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Livingston Commission approves handbook updates after heated public comment on speaker categories
Summary
The Commission adopted revisions to its handbook including a threat-response appendix and clarified public-comment procedures. Residents objected to proposed rules that would prioritize commenters by residency and role; commissioners agreed edits to give the chair discretion and to note a 3-minute statutory minimum.
The Livingston City Commission approved updates to its Commission Handbook on a 4–0 recorded vote, adopting a threat-response appendix, incorporating the newly codified conflict-of-interest policy and making several procedural edits to the public-comment process.
City Manager Mister Gager presented the handbook changes and identified nine specific edits staff would incorporate after the meeting. The changes included a new appendix addressing threat-response, clarified language around how proclamations and public records are handled, and a proposed ordering mechanism for public commenters (city residents, City business owners, county residents, and online commenters) intended to prioritize those who pay city taxes when comment volumes are high.
The proposed ordering drew immediate criticism from multiple residents during public comment. "This is very divisive," Livingston Chamber representative Leslie Fiegel said, arguing that classifying speakers by category would discourage participation and fragment the public. Patricia (Gray Road) and other residents reinforced that view, calling the categorization harmful to civic engagement.
Commissioners debated the proposal at length. Several members said they supported prioritizing city residents for time-limited hearings but sought to avoid a rigid, constantly applied categorization. The Commission agreed to a compromise: add language giving the chair discretion to implement an ordering and to limit comment time in high-volume situations, while explicitly noting the statutory minimum of three minutes per speaker. The manager clarified that final agenda-setting authority remains with the city manager and that items codified in municipal code or by prior resolution would require separate ordinance or resolution action to change.
Other contested items included adding a short pledge of allegiance to future agendas and housekeeping edits (page-number corrections, board membership updates, and insertion of penalty provisions related to closed meeting violations). The City Manager committed to returning the handbook with the edits incorporated; the policy will be published after those technical changes.
What happens next: the City Manager will prepare a redlined final handbook showing the nine edits discussed and publish the final handbook on the city website; items that are codified in the municipal code (for example the conflict-of-interest ordinance) will require a separate ordinance or resolution to amend.
Vote: Handbook approved as modified by Commission (4–0; one excused).
