2012/07/18 Council Agenda Packet

NEW SECTION: PUBLIC COMMENT. A. To facilitate the orderly presentation of public comments,those wishing to speak should complete a speaker sheet before the start of the meeting and present it to the Council Administrative Coordinator. B. All public comments at the start of the Csouncil Mmeeting under Citizen Comments are she-JAW-be limited to issues not on the formal agenda;public comments on specific items on the agenda willchall be allowed before Csouncil action is taken on those items. C. To provideensaure equal opportunity for the public to comment,a speaker's comments should be limited to three minutes per person,except in those instances where the person is speaking on behalf ofrepresenting a group or organization,in which case five minute should be allowed.When the agenda is long or contains item(s)that consume extended periods of time Where necessary,due to the number of persons who wish to address tho Council,the presiding officer is authorize to limit all persons'remarks to an equal period of less than three minutes.Further,the presiding officer may postpone Citizen Comments when one or more Council members must leave the meeting early in which case the presiding officer will announce the change and the reason therefore at the beginning of the meeting. To further providecnsuro equal opportunity for the public to comment,each person may address the Council only one time during the Public Comment portion of the meeting. D. Written comments submitted prior to Council action shall be considered in the same manner as oral comments. E. All remarks will be addressed to the Council as a whole. F. All speakers during Public Comment,in the discussion,comments,or debate of any matter or issue, shah be courteous in their language and deportment kind shall not engage in or discuss or comment on personalities,or indulge in derogatory remarks or insinuations in respect to any member of the Council,or any member of the staff or the public,but shall at all times confine their remarks to those facts which are germane and relevant,as determined by the presiding officer,to the question or matter under discussion.) Comment[38]:Since these are open comments, G. No Use of Public Comment for Campaigns. Noperson mayusepublic comment for the relevance is not an issue.Further,it would be difficult for the presiding officer to determine purpose of assisting a campaign for election of any person to any office or for the relevance without being arbitrary promotion of or opposition to any ballot proposition. Further,any direct mention violation of thise e• shall constitute grounds for immediate suspension of such person's right to speak at that Council meeting. H. No Use of Public Comment for Advertising. No person addressing the Council may use Public Comment for the purpose of advertising. Advertising is defined as"promoting by making known, proclaiming publicly,drawing attention to,or making conspicuous any item, product, service,or thing,for profit f or otherwise).°This does not prevent or preclude any Comment[39]:This language could preclude a neighborhood spokesperson from informing Council person addressingthe Council from expressing his or her views oro Inions on matters that p, g opinions, -. of an upcoming fundraiser for their neighborhood are or may come before the Council - - - - group or an event sponsored by a neighborhood Transgression.The When a speaker violates these Rules and does not conform to the Comment[3io]:Too vague/legalistic with this rules after being warned or when a speaker causes a'disruption so as to render the orderly language conduct of a meeting unfeasible,the presiding officer may suspend the person's right to S s eak or have the •erson removed from the meetin :.- e - •: Comment pH]:This new language tracks the whether a speaker's remarks fail to comply with these Rules or exceed the scope of the Open Public Meetings Act and reduces risk of arbitrary enforcement 5 13