Hagerstown council to draft tighter public-comment rules after work session discussion

HAGERSTOWN, Md. — During its Oct. 28 work session, the Mayor and City Council discussed revisions to the council's rules of procedure focused on the monthly public-comment period, with Councilman Kristen Alshauer urging stricter controls to keep remarks focused on city business.

Alshauer told colleagues he had circulated a draft and said, "This is probably an unpopular opinion, but I have never been a huge fan of our public comment period each month." He argued that modern channels such as email and social media reduce the need for lengthy in-person comment and that some speakers repeatedly use the podium to address matters "that have nothing to do with the germane of our capabilities," citing past instances in which the council curtailed the comment period because speakers repeatedly addressed topics outside city authority.

Alshauer outlined several specific proposals: require preregistration with the city clerk for anyone speaking during the public-comment period; require remarks be germane to city agenda items or other city business; enforce a uniform three-minute time limit for speakers; require speakers to state their name and address before commenting; and direct non-germane matters to the clerk so the mayor and council can decide whether to place them on a future agenda. He also described a short "housekeeping" slot at the end of meetings for brief communications that could prompt staff or the mayor to put an item on a future agenda.

Other councilmembers expressed agreement and emphasized enforcement of existing rules. One councilmember referenced the council's rules (cited as sections 7.1, 7.2 and 7.4) and urged that the plain-language expectations be posted on the city website so residents know what is acceptable at the podium. Another member said speakers should be required to give their name and address and that staff should prepare a simplified summary of the rules to be publicly available.

No formal ordinance or motion was introduced or voted on during the session. Instead, the council asked staff to draft revisions to the regular-session agenda and to return a proposed change for council review on Nov. 4. The group's direction was recorded as a referral for staff to prepare the draft; there was no recorded roll-call vote.

The discussion took place during the work session portion of the Oct. 28 meeting. Council members said the intent is to clarify and enforce existing procedures rather than to limit residents' ability to contact the council by other channels. The council did not specify exact enforcement mechanisms or whether any proposed changes would be adopted as ordinance amendments or as internal rules.