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Ione council removes agenda item after objections over lack of public justification
Summary
At a March 18 special meeting, the Ione City Council voted to remove agenda item 1 from its posted agenda. Several council members objected, saying the removal lacked public justification and that municipal code and city policy require transparency and public comment before removing posted items.
The Ione City Council voted during a March 18 special meeting to remove agenda item 1 from the publicly posted agenda. The motion was seconded and carried; council members who objected said they were not given the justification required under city procedures and municipal code.
Several council members objected immediately after the vote, saying the removal had been handled too quickly and that council members and the public had not been afforded the chance to review or comment on the reasons for removing the item. One council member said the item “clearly was discussed prior to this meeting,” and other council members said the justification for placing the item on the agenda had not been shared with the full council.
Those objecting referenced the city’s municipal code and the city policy manual while arguing that the council should not grant individual authority that bypasses existing policy. One speaker said a recent council resolution had “bypassed policy” and given authority to a single member rather than the body as a whole; that speaker said they planned to file a protest and asked that the resolution be reviewed again.
Council members who supported the removal moved and seconded the motion at the meeting; no individual names were recorded on the public record as the mover or seconder in the transcript. After debate about procedure and the availability of supporting materials, the council opened public comment on the matter.
Resident speakers raised concerns during public comment about transparency and potential motivations for the removal. After public comment, the council announced the meeting would go into closed session for several items. The record shows the agenda item had been removed during the public portion of the meeting; council members said the matter would be revisited.
No formal disciplinary action, censure, or final decision concerning the subject matter of the removed item was recorded in the public portion of the meeting. The transcript indicates at least one council member said they would revisit the removed item and request that the associated resolution and supporting materials be reviewed in light of claimed conflicts with city policy.
