Granite County commissioners on Tuesday faced several public comments and written statements objecting to recently adopted rules that restrict how people may make public comment during county meetings, including requirements that Zoom callers appear on camera and that callers use the public-comment period rather than interrupt agenda items.
Several written speakers and in-person commenters said the policies were targeted at one resident, and urged the commission to rescind the rules or seek outside review. In a letter read during public comment, Jim Backhay, identifying himself as a Navy veteran and local resident, wrote that the restrictions “take censorship to a whole new level and place undue barriers on public participation.”
Commissioners and staff defended the policies as measures to preserve orderly meetings. Commissioner Blaine said the county is trying to avoid repeated disruptions: “The rules are falling in line with what she's doing, trying to prevent that, basically, while still accepting public comment verbally or [on] Zoom,” he said during the meeting. He also said civil litigation is available if people believe rules are unlawful.
The commission discussed the practical limits of phone-only participation. County staff said callers can still use the conference line during the public-comment period but that allowing callers to interrupt agenda items by phone creates disruptions. Staff also said the county had considered Zoom transcript/summary tools but decided against them because of accuracy concerns.
No change to the rules was made at Tuesday’s session. Commissioners said a 30-day suspension previously applied to a named resident was a sanction intended to stop meeting disruptions; county counsel later confirmed the penalty had been processed as an administrative sanction, not as a change to the open-meetings law. Commissioners said they would continue to accept written comments and in-person public comment during the established public-comment periods.
The issue drew repeated remarks across agenda items; several commenters requested a third-party review or comparison with other Montana counties. The commission did not vote on rescinding or amending the participation rules at the meeting.