Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Meeting Rules topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners debate changing public-comment rules; revised language to return next week
Summary
A commissioner proposed repealing the current meeting-rule resolution and replacing it to require comment cards, three-minute limits and a clarified chair-recognition requirement; debate centered on whether on-agenda speakers should be required to be recognized by the chair and how to prevent open-ended interruptions.
A commissioner proposed repealing the commission's existing meeting rules and replacing them with revised language to clarify public-comment procedures, including requiring speakers to submit comment cards at the start of the meeting and limiting each speaker to three minutes.
The author of the proposed replacement (presented by Speaker 1) said the change would let members of the public "stand up here and take my 3 minutes" before a motion on an agenda item, which the proposer argued would reduce repetitive interruptions during debate. Other commissioners pushed back on removing a provision that says members of the public must be recognized by the chair before speaking; Speaker 6 said that requirement should remain to prevent people from speaking out of turn.
The commission debated practical issues, including how the change would apply to special meetings (where posting deadlines differ), whether the chair should retain authority to add emergency items after a filing deadline, and how to prevent the agenda from expanding unexpectedly when items are added late. A motion was made and seconded to repeal the prior resolution and replace it with the rewritten language; commissioners agreed to bring the revised wording back next week for formal adoption rather than voting on final language at this meeting.
The discussion also included procedural references to Robert's Rules and how to handle large groups with a single spokesperson. Commissioners asked staff to prepare the revised resolution for next meeting consideration.
