Unacceptable Designations of Principal Profession, Vocation, or Occupation
San Diego Municipal Code § 27.0607
in effect§27.0607 Unacceptable Designations of Principal Profession, Vocation, or Occupation
(a) The City Clerk shall reject as unacceptable any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation that fails to comply with or is inconsistent with section 27.0605, is prohibited by section 27.0606, is misleading, or is otherwise inconsistent with or fails to comply with this Article.
(b) The following types of activities are distinguished from professions, vocations, and occupations and are not acceptable as designations of principal profession, vocation, or occupation under sections 27.0605 and 27.0607:
(1) Avocation. An avocation is a casual or occasional activity, diversion, or hobby pursued principally for enjoyment and in addition to the candidate’s principal profession, vocation, or occupation. Avocations include hobbies, social activities, volunteer work, and matters pursued as an amateur.
(2) Pro Forma Profession, Vocation, and Occupation. A pro forma profession, vocation, or occupation is a position held by the candidate which consumes little to none of the candidate’s time and which, by its nature, is voluntary or for which the candidate is not compensated. Pro forma professions, vocations, and occupations include honorary peace officer, volunteer firefighter, honorary chairperson, honorary professor, goodwill ambassador, and official host or hostess. Status. A status is a state, condition, social position, or legal (3) relation of the candidate to another person, persons, or the community as a whole. A status is generic in nature and generally fails to identify with any particular specificity the manner by which the candidate earns their livelihood or spends the substantial majority of their time. Statuses include veteran, proponent, reformer, scholar, founder, philosopher, philanthropist, activist, patriot, taxpayer, concerned citizen, husband, and wife.
(c) Under section 27.0607, the City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which would mislead voters. In making this determination, the City Clerk shall determine whether there is a substantial likelihood that the candidate’s proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation would mislead a reasonably prudent voter as to the candidate’s principal profession, vocation, or occupation. The City Clerk shall consider the plain meaning of the words in the proposed designation and the factual accuracy of the proposed designation based on supporting documents or other evidence submitted by the candidate in support of the proposed designation, upon request of the City Clerk.
(d) A designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation may not include commercial identification information, such as a trademark, service mark, trade name, or the specific name of a business, partnership, corporation, company, foundation, or organization. Examples of an improper use of commercial identification information include “Acme Company President,” “Universal Widgets Inventor,” “Director, Smith Foundation,” and “UCLA Professor.”
(e) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation that would suggest an evaluation of the candidate’s qualifications, honesty, integrity, leadership abilities, or character. Such impermissible adjectives include “senior,” “emeritus,” “specialist,” “magnate,” “outstanding,” “leading,” “expert,” “virtuous,” “eminent,” “best,” “exalted,” “prominent,” “famous,” “respected,” “honored,” “honest,” “dishonest,” “corrupt,” and “lazy.”
(f) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which abbreviates the word “retired” or uses it after any word or words which it modifies. Examples of impermissible designations include “Ret. Businesswoman,” “Firefighter, Retired,” or “City Attorney, Retired.”
(g) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which uses a word or prefix to indicate a prior profession, vocation, occupation, or elected or appointed or judicial office previously held by the candidate. Such impermissible words or prefixes include “ex-,” “former,” “past,” and “erstwhile.” Examples of impermissible designations include “Former Councilmember,” “Ex-Mayor,” and “Former Educator.”
(h) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which uses the name of any political party.
(i) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which uses a word or words referring to a racial, religious, or ethnic group.
(1) The City Clerk shall reject any designation which implies or expressly contains any ethnic or racial slurs or ethnically or racially derogatory language.
(2) If the candidate is a member of the clergy, the candidate may not refer to their specific denomination. However, the candidate may use their clerical title as a designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation such as “Rabbi,” “Pastor,” “Minister,” “Priest,” “Bishop,” “Deacon,” “Monk,” “Nun,” and “Imam.”
(j) The City Clerk shall reject any proposed designation of principal profession, vocation, or occupation which refers to any activity prohibited by law. Unlawful activity includes any activities, conduct, professions, vocations, or occupations prohibited by state or federal law.
(“Unacceptable Designations of Principal Profession, Vocation, or Occupation” added 1-12-2026 by O-22028 N.S.; effective 2-11-2026.) Notification to Candidate if Designation Violates Restrictions
Source: City of San Diego Office of the City Clerk, San Diego Municipal Code and City Charter (docs.sandiego.gov PDFs)URL: https://docs.sandiego.gov/municode/MuniCodeChapter02/Ch02Art07Division06.pdf#page=8Fetched: 10/28/2026