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Aurora rules committee considers tighter agenda deadlines and clearer remote-notice rules
Summary
At an Ad Hoc Rules Committee meeting, members debated requiring agenda packets five days before council meetings, tightening late-item deadlines and clarifying 24-hour notice and remote attendance rules to give staff and the public more time to prepare.
Mayor Pro Tem and Committee Chair Lisonbee Coombs opened the meeting and guided discussion of Article 1, which covers council meeting scheduling and agenda procedures. Coombs said the city’s packet is posted online and noted a staff proposal to move routine packet publication from Friday to Wednesday to give council, staff and the public more lead time: “Currently, they're typically published by Friday afternoon… this is suggesting that packets should be published by Wednesday afternoon,” she said.
Committee members debated how stringent to make the deadlines. A committee member (S2) proposed that the agenda packet be “published by the city clerk at least 5 days prior to the scheduled meeting” to allow sufficient review time. Members discussed a corresponding change to the internal deadline for submitting items, with late items limited to no less than two working days before publication (effectively end of day Monday if packets are posted Wednesday).
The group also reviewed legal posting requirements and emergency-item procedures. Coombs noted the baseline legal obligation: “That’s the legal requirement; 24 hours,” while a committee member (S2) said emergency designations must remain narrow so they are not used to bypass regular notice and committee review. The committee discussed maintaining a high threshold to change the calendar (a two-thirds council vote) so the public can plan around a stable schedule.
On remote attendance and notice, members reaffirmed a 24-hour notification standard and debated whether two methods of notice (phone, in-person, or city email) should remain required for special study sessions. A member asked whether councilors should be encouraged — but not required — to attend regular council meetings in person, noting limitations to full participation in a virtual setting. The committee agreed to add clearer language about notifying the city manager, city attorney and mayor when members intend to appear remotely.
What happens next: Committee staff will incorporate the suggested timelines and notice clarifications into a revised draft for study session review. The chair invited additional input from council members and the public before the committee files a final recommendation to the full council.
