Community Board for Police Accountability adopts formal public-comment rules, including three-minute baseline

A majority of members of the Community Board for Police Accountability voted unanimously to adopt a formal public-comment procedure that will (in most meetings) provide a three-minute speaking baseline, a 30-second grace period to finish remarks, and a mechanism for the facilitator to reallocate any leftover public-comment time.

The board’s motion, moved by Tim O’Donnell and seconded by Dina Ross, specifies that general public comment will be held at the beginning of every meeting and again before any vote the agenda-setting committee has previously identified as substantive. The motion allows the facilitator to grant additional time when the number of sign-ups and remaining meeting time make it practical, and it permits advance written public comment to be submitted online for inclusion in the record.

Board members said they sought a balance between hearing community voices and running efficient meetings. During a broad discussion of five guiding questions, members expressed differing preferences — some favoring comment at the start, others at the end, and many urging flexibility — but most supported requiring public comment ahead of decisions that affect policy, budgets or community interests.

Several public commenters pushed the board to center impacted people. Charlie Michelle Wesley, who identified themself as a tribal member of Northwest tribes, urged the board to "take impacted community members input as truth and wisdom" and to prioritize independent investigators and community representation in accountability work. Barbara of Portland Cop Watch raised concerns about the health impacts of crowd-control chemicals and recounted watching body-camera footage of a custody death.

Heidi from the City Attorney’s Office cautioned the board that disciplinary votes about personnel must be based on the investigative record under city code and thus may not be appropriate subjects for public comment. The board’s motion reflects that limit by assigning the agenda-setting committee responsibility to identify which posted agenda items are "substantive" and therefore require pre-vote public comment.

At the vote, members answered by roll call; the motion passed unanimously. The new policy text as read in the meeting limits initial public-comment turns to three minutes per speaker (30-second wrap-up), allows the facilitator discretion to allocate additional time across speakers if time remains, requires that substantive items be noticed by the agenda-setting committee, and enables advance written public comment to be submitted online for the board’s review.

The board’s adoption creates a consistent floor for public access while leaving room for the board’s leadership and staff to refine logistics such as sign-up processes, accommodations, and how to manage comment windows tied to specific agenda items.