Civil Service Commission members are appointed by the Mayor and approved by the City Council. Commissioners serve for five years and are responsible for developing and administering policies governing the classification, recruitment, selection, promotion, and removal of Classified employees of the City. Civil Service Commission Rules are formally adopted by the City Council and become law as part of the Municipal Code.

The Civil Service Commission conducts regular business meetings generally on the first Thursday of each month. These are public meetings and agendas (PDF) are available from the Personnel Department one week before each meeting.

The Civil Service Commission has authority to conduct investigations of conditions in the City workforce. It also hears appeals of employees receiving discipline, hears appeals for rejected applications, considers leave of absence requests, and many other personnel matters that can affect the Classified Service. The Civil Service Commission annually reviews classification and salary issues to ensure that the classification and salary relationships are appropriate.