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Committee clarifies public comment rules, votes to adopt amended BEDH and BEDH‑E
Summary
The committee voted to adopt amended public‑comment policies clarifying that public comment is not a question‑and‑answer period, that the chair sets participation time limits, and to harmonize 'citizen' vs. 'speaker' language; changes were approved by voice votes.
The Blackstone‑Millville School Committee voted Oct. 28 to adopt amended language governing public comment at committee meetings, clarifying that the segment is not a question‑and‑answer period and that the presiding chair determines timing and order.
Tammy Lemieux and the policy subcommittee presented harmonized drafts (BEDH and BEDH‑E) after finding contradictory language across existing documents. The revisions retain a short statement about conducting district business "in an orderly manner," move detailed rules into a referenced guidelines appendix, and make explicit that the committee will listen rather than engage in dialogue during public comment. The subcommittee also standardized terminology (citizen vs. speaker) and added a provision allowing the chair to permit non‑resident speakers at the chair's discretion.
The committee considered potential unintended consequences—e.g., whether three‑minute limits could exclude those with organized concerns—but members agreed the chair's discretion and appendix reference would allow flexibility in 'hot‑topic' situations. The committee approved BEDH as amended and BEDH‑E as amended by voice vote; the transcript records the motion, second and voice votes but does not include a roll‑call tally.
