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Resident denied public comment; commission cites written request rule and references state statute
Summary
A resident was not allowed to speak during the meeting after county staff said the commission's policy requires a written request to the mayor's office five days in advance; the resident cited a state statute during the exchange.
A resident seeking to make a public comment at the Putnam County Commission meeting was told she could not speak because the county’s public-comment policy requires a written request to the mayor’s office at least five days in advance.
“No, ma'am. Our policies are very clear. You have to request in writing to the mayor's office 5 days in advance,” Mr. Clark, the county clerk, told the meeting. The resident responded that the agenda had been posted only five days earlier and she therefore had not had time to submit a request; she also cited a state statute during the exchange, saying "this is since I know you're an attorney, it's 844101 at SEC and you can take a look at it." The clerk acknowledged the comment but did not permit the speaker time for public comment at that meeting.
The exchange occurred during the meeting’s public-comment portion; the commission did not take further action or amend its public-comment procedure during the session.
The transcript records the resident’s concern about timing and the clerk’s statement of the written-request policy on the record. No formal legal interpretation or advisory opinion was offered by the commission at the meeting; the resident referred to the statute verbally and the clerk responded that the policy governed public comment in that session.
