Sec. 2-36Public comment at city council meetings

(a) An agenda together with accompanying information shall be sent to the mayor and each member of the city council by the city clerk three days preceding the council meeting. This agenda, upon approval at the beginning of each meeting, shall govern the order of business for the meeting. Additions, deletions, or amendments to the approved agenda shall be made by a majority vote of the council.

(b) Following the approval of the minutes of the previous meeting, there shall be an agenda item entitled "speaker appearances." This agenda item shall contain a list of those individuals who have requested at least five days in advance of the meeting that their names be placed on the agenda. Following presentations by those on the agenda, the chairperson shall recognize those who wish to speak on a specific agenda item and have completed a speaker appearance form.

(c) Individuals who wish to appear before the council may submit a written request to the city clerk together with a statement of the topic to be addressed. Those individuals who have submitted a written request to appear before the city council prior to the meeting shall be allowed to address the council for up to ten minutes.

(d) Immediately prior to each meeting, individuals who wish to address a specific agenda item shall complete a speaker appearance form, a copy of which is attached hereto as "Exhibit A." The speaker appearance form will be provided by the city clerk or the city clerk's designee who shall be available to answer any questions regarding procedures for addressing the council. Speakers who wish to address a specific agenda item shall be given up to five minutes to make their remarks. No speakers will be allowed who did not complete a speaker appearance form before the meeting.

(e) The council may prohibit discussion of those matters that are exempt from public discussion by the Georgia Open Meetings Act. These topics may include real estate acquisitions, pending litigation, and personnel matters. Speakers may submit any concerns exempt from discussion to the council or city manager in writing. No comments or presentation regarding any pending criminal charges shall be allowed until ten days after a final judgement in the matter or until ten days after all charges have been dismissed.

(f) Notwithstanding any provision contained in this policy, meetings of the Ashburn City Council are not open forums and public comments shall be limited to those matters pertaining to the operation and function of the municipal government of the City of Ashburn. Nothing in this policy shall provide any individual any right to make a presentation to the council that is irrelevant or unrelated to the city.

(g) Prior to any statement or presentation to the council, each speaker shall state his/her name and shall provide his/her address. Each speaker shall comply with the following restrictions:

(1) No person shall be allowed to make obscene, derogatory, or slanderous remarks that disrupt the orderly conduct of the meeting.

(2) No person shall disrupt the meeting or interfere in any way with the orderly conduct of the meeting.

(3) Remarks shall end when a speaker's allotted time has expired.

(4) Speakers may respond to questions from the mayor and city council, should clarification be necessary. Provided, however, no person shall be permitted to enter into discussion with the mayor or council member or any member of the city staff during the conduct of a meeting.

(h) The public comment period is designed to gain input from the public and not for immediate responses by the city council to public comments. While the city council cannot assure each speaker of a specific or individualized response, the city council will consider the public comments and any supporting materials provided by speakers.

(i) Any person who willfully violates these rules shall be prohibited from appearing before the council for a period of 60 days. The mayor shall order the removal of anyone who disrupts or interferes with the orderly conduct of the meeting.

(j) Availability of agenda. Prior to any meeting of the city council, the council shall make available an agenda of all matters expected to come before the council at such meeting. The agenda shall be available upon request and shall be posted at the meeting site as far in advance of the meeting as reasonably possible, but shall not be required to be available more than two weeks prior to the meeting and shall be posted at a minimum at some time during the two-week period immediately prior to the meeting. Failure to include on the agenda an item which becomes necessary to address during the course of the meeting shall not preclude consideration of and action upon such item.

History: (Res. No. 18-05, § 1(Exh. A), 7-5-2018)

Editor's note— Exhibit A to Res. No. 18-05 is not set out herein but is available in the office of the city clerk.