TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
FROM: Supervisor Haschak
MEETING DATE: February 11, 2025
DEPARTMENT CONTACT:
Supervisor Haschak
PHONE:
707-463-4221
ITEM TYPE: Regular Agenda
TIME ALLOCATED FOR ITEM: 30 Minutes
AGENDA TITLE:
title
Discussion and Possible Action Including Direction to Staff Regarding "Rule 18a: Public Expression" of the Rules of Procedure of the Board of Supervisors
(Sponsor: Supervisor Haschak)
End
RECOMMENDED ACTION/MOTION:
recommendation
Discuss and provide direction to staff regarding revisions to "Rule 18a: Public Expression" of the Rules of Procedure of the Board of Supervisors.
End
PREVIOUS BOARD/BOARD COMMITTEE ACTIONS:
On January 7, 2025, the Board of Supervisors adopted the Rules of Procedure, including "Rule 18.a. Public Expression" providing the Chair with discretion to invoke the 10-minute limit rule for single subject matter topics not on the Board's agenda during Public Expression.
SUMMARY OF REQUEST:
The 10-minute rule for a single subject in Public Expression (items not on the Board of Supervisors Agenda) has been in the Rules of Procedure for many years and has been implemented at the discretion of the Chair. The issue includes balancing the reasonable availability of public expression for items not on the agenda with achieving the efficient and effective operation of a public meeting with scheduled business so that taxpayer money is not wasted. When there is unlimited public expression at the beginning of the meeting (which can range from none to multiple hours), lengthy public expression can significantly delay the timing of publicly noticed/agendized items, leading to government inefficiency, e.g., when staff has to wait for their item as opposed to working on other departmental business. However, adherence to the 10-minute rule is problematic in that some items are debatable, and/or not clearly defined as a single topic. Additionally, if public expression has an overall cap in time allowing for up to ...
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