The SLO City Council voted 5-0 in closed session this morning to appeal the recent decision that called for restoring binding arbitration to the city charter by the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) – a quasi-judicial administrative agency which oversees collective bargaining – and authorized up to $10,000 to be spent for related legal costs. The unanimous vote came after hearing from many concerned community members – including the Chamber – urging the Council to appeal the decision and respect the intentions of voters. Measure B, which repealed binding arbitration and restored local fiscal control and decision making to City Council, was approved in 2011 with 73 percent of the votes. The appeal process to PERB is expected to take at least one year during which time the administrative law judge’s ruling will be stayed. The appeal – which many speculate may not to be successful due to the make-up of PERB, which is dominated by public employee unions – may be just the first step in the city’s legal process.