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Twentynine Palms council adopts new meeting-technology policy tied to SB 707
Summary
The Twentynine Palms City Council unanimously adopted a policy implementing Brown Act changes (SB 707) for hybrid meetings, outlining a pause-and-repair approach to tech failures and promising clearer public-comment time rules after public input.
The Twentynine Palms City Council on July 14 adopted a policy to govern hybrid and livestreamed meetings under recent Brown Act changes tied to SB 707, voting unanimously 5-0.
City Manager (S2) told the council the policy clarifies how meetings will proceed if technology fails: staff will pause to try to repair the connection, and if the problem persists for up to an hour the council may resume and finish the meeting. The manager said the threshold and procedures reflect guidance intended to keep meetings accessible while balancing the practical need to continue public business.
Several members of the public urged the council to clarify time-limit language in the draft policy. Kimberly Zysacs (S14) said she opposed any change that would shorten public comment, calling two minutes “a very short amount of time” for speakers who prepare detailed remarks on complex topics such as CEQA. Cindy Bernard (S15) urged explicit language about whether speaker limits and time caps apply per agenda item or to the meeting as a whole and noted a conflict in the draft about registration deadlines.
Councilmembers said they did not intend to suppress public input and asked staff to revise unclear wording. City Manager S2 said the city currently provides three minutes for in-person speakers and that staff will examine the draft policy and bring clarifying edits back to the council.
The motion to adopt the policy was made by Councilmember S3, seconded, and approved in a roll-call vote recorded as 5-0. The council directed staff to revise ambiguous time-limit language and return with adjustments, and to publish the final policy and procedure for public review.
