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RSU 40 committee discusses narrowing public comment to district stakeholders; asks staff for draft
Summary
Committee members debated whether to limit public comment to RSU 40 residents, taxpayers, parents, students and employees. No policy change was made; staff were asked to draft language for the next meeting that would prioritize district stakeholders while leaving a chair exception.
The RSU 40 policy committee spent significant time discussing policy BEDH (public participation) and whether the district should prioritize speakers with direct ties to RSU 40.
Speaker 1 opened the issue by saying districts nearby had experienced heated meetings and suggested the committee consider guardrails to prevent marathon sessions. "What I would like to see is I'd like us to welcome feedback from the public, but I also wanna avoid having another 1AM marathon when it comes to public participation as well," Speaker 1 said.
Speaker 4 recommended draft language that would limit individual public-comment speakers to people with a direct stake in the district: "individual speaking at public comment must be a resident of RSU 40, a taxpayer, a parent or guardian of a student in RSU 40 schools, a student of RSU 40, or an employee of RSU 40," Speaker 4 said, while also proposing a chair exception to allow the board to invite an outside expert when appropriate.
Other members raised concerns about excluding outside experts or organized callers who might have relevant information; members noted the honor system limits enforcement of any self-identification rule. Speaker 2 suggested giving priority to local taxpayers and parents if time limits are needed, but stopping short of excluding non-residents entirely.
No formal motion was made to amend BEDH at this meeting. Members asked staff to prepare a written draft of proposed language and return it to the committee at the next meeting for consideration.
