Gastonia council adopts rule letting majority temporarily transfer presiding duties after heated debate

The Gastonia City Council voted to add and adopt two related changes to its rules on Aug. 5, 2025 that let the council temporarily transfer the duties of the presiding officer if a majority of members determine the presiding officer is failing to maintain decorum or preventing timely progress on the agenda.

Council debate focused on whether the change would limit the mayor’s authority, how “decorum” would be judged, and whether the council should delay action until all members were present. Council members voted 4–1 to add the items to the agenda for immediate consideration and later approved the ordinance amendment with a procedural clarification that the replacement presiding officer would serve only for the duration of the currently pending agenda item. The amendment also specifies the city clerk must conduct a roll-call vote and announce the results.

The measure’s proponents said the change is aimed at preserving orderly meetings. Council member Barber said the amendment is “about order. It’s about decorum,” and argued the council should have a way to ensure meetings move forward when debate becomes prolonged. Mayor Pro Tem Curlin described the change as a “worst-case” tool that would require a majority vote and said it was not intended to be punitive.

Opponents called the language subjective and warned it could become a tool to silence outspoken members. Councilwoman Littlejohn, who said she represents a historically marginalized ward, told the council the proposal is “about silencing appointed officials” and urged tabling the change until absent members could vote. The mayor also said he opposed what he described as a last-minute effort to limit the mayor’s powers and called for a written policy for ceremonial honors after an unrelated dispute earlier in the meeting.

After discussion, members added a clarifying sentence to the ordinance specifying that the replacement presiding officer would “assume the duties of this section for the duration of the currently pending agenda item.” Council supporters said that clarification ensures the change applies only to the specific item in question rather than stripping the mayor’s powers for the remainder of a meeting.

The council also discussed the voting thresholds required to adopt or to later invoke the rule; staff and the city attorney advised that normal council actions are by majority vote unless statute or local code requires a supermajority. Several council members requested staff insert explicit language on majority thresholds and on the limited scope of the replacement presiding officer into the ordinance.

The council instructed staff to prepare the final ordinance language with the added clarifying clause and to publish the amended policy in the city’s rules of procedure. The council did not direct a change in other governance documents beyond the items voted on Aug. 5.

Ending: Council members who opposed the measure asked that similarly consequential procedural changes be delayed until the full seven-member council can vote. Supporters said the change is a narrowly drawn tool intended to preserve the ability of the council to complete business when a presiding officer becomes unable to maintain order.