Bill 3967                                                                                  ORDINANCE ______

 

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF WEST PLAINS, MISSOURI SETTING FORTH POLICIES AS TO PUBLIC ADDRESSES TO THE CITY COUNCIL.

 

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF WEST PLAINS, MISSOURI, AS FOLLOWS:

 

Section 1:  A new section 2-40 shall be added to the West Plains City Code, to read as follows:

 

Article II. City Council, Section 2-40 Public Addresses to Council

  1. The public shall be allowed to address the City Council only as provided for in this Section.
  2. Any person wishing to be added to the agenda to address the City Council must first request this in writing (EXHIBIT A) to the City Administrator or the City Clerk by noon of the Wednesday preceding the Monday Council meeting.  Each such request shall set forth the issue or issues to be discussed, the date that the person proposes to appear before the City Council, and include documentation if any.  No person shall be denied the right to speak due to the nature of an issue to be discussed so long as the issue relates to the City’s business or a matter over which the Council has control and is not repetitive.  Priority for speaking will be given in the order that completed written requests are received
  3. Repetitive, irrelevant or abusive remarks from the public, or matters not concerning the City’s business or any matter over which the Council has no control, may be closed off at any time by the Presiding Officer or by the majority vote of the Council members present.
  4. Each speaker shall be limited to five (5) minutes time period for each topic unless given additional time by the Presiding Officer. 
  5. Each person addressing the City Council shall maintain a civil attitude and decorum and shall give his name and home address or place of business in an audible tone of voice for the record.  Loud or boisterous conduct will not be tolerated or allowed.
  6. All remarks shall be presented to the City Council as a whole and not to any individual member thereof.  This is a procedural requirement and is not intended to limit the content of any remarks.  No person other than members of the City Council, city staff and the person having the floor shall be permitted to enter into any discussion, either directly or through a member of the City Council, without the permission of the Presiding Officer.  No question may be asked of a Council member or a member of the City staff without the permission of the Presiding Officer.
  7. The Presiding Officer at each meeting of the City Council shall have the responsibility to rule out of order any person violating these rules and may direct such individual to conduct themselves in a manner that complies with these rules of conduct.  Any failure to abide by the order of the Presiding Officer may result in forfeiture of the remaining time allocated for the address, or in extreme cases, removal from the Council chambers.  Additionally, any Council member may request a ruling on whether any individual appearing before the Council is out of order and the Council may, by majority vote, direct that an individual who is out of order be ordered to cease his presentation and be seated or be ejected from the Council chambers.
  8. No issue brought up in an address to the Council under this Section shall be acted upon by the Council during the portion of the meeting set aside for public addresses to the Council unless the issue is clearly stated on the agenda
  9. To avoid the perception that a statement is true because there is not an immediate response, the Presiding Officer shall emphasize in an appropriate manner that City procedure is for staff to respond, when warranted, to comments directly to the person speaking at a later date after staff has had an opportunity to review the matter commented upon.
  10. Each person appearing before the City Council shall be provided with a copy of the Section proper to their appearance.  As a condition to making an address to the Council, each person shall acknowledge receipt of a copy of this Section in writing.

 

Section 2:  This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage by the City Council and approval by the Mayor of the City of West Plains, Missouri or as provided by law.

 

PASSED AND APPROVED THIS 27TH DAY OF MARCH 2006.

 

                                                                        CITY OF WEST PLAINS, MISSOURI

 

 

 

                                                                        ________________________________

                                                                        MAYOR JOE PAUL (J. P.) EVANS

ATTEST:

 

_________________________________

CITY CLERK CONNIE SHELTON

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EXHIBIT A
 
 

 


REQUEST TO SPEAK

 

City of West Plains Council Meeting Date  _______________________

 

Request Date _____________________

 

NAME: ______________________________________________________

              Please Print

 

 

 

 

I wish to speak for a period not exceeding five (5) minutes for each topic (exclusive of time spent responding to questions) on the following issue(s):

 

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Please attach any documentation such as petitions, maps, etc to this request.

 

I hereby acknowledge that I have received a copy of and agree to abide by Ordinance 3960.

 

Signature ______________________________________   Date:____________________

 

 

Please Note:

This request must be delivered to the City Administrator or City Clerk prior to 12:00 noon on the Wednesday preceding the meeting and may be honored at the time  “Guests” appears on the agenda or a specific agenda item is open for discussion.