Chapter 2.04 CITY COUNCIL

Chapter 2.04
CITY COUNCIL¹

Sections:

2.04.040 Council meetings – Disruptive behavior prohibited.

2.04.010 Regular meetings – Time.

The regular meetings of the city council shall be held on the first and third Tuesday of each and every calendar month of the year as follows: at 6:30 p.m. for closed session business and/or study sessions, when scheduled, and at 7:30 p.m. for the general business session. Should the first or third Tuesday of any month be a legal holiday, then such meeting shall be held at the same hour on the first legal date subsequent thereto. Notwithstanding the foregoing, closed session meetings of the city council may be scheduled as part of the general business session, when necessary, and nothing herein shall operate to preclude the city council from reconvening into closed session discussions in the event that the city council does not complete the closed session between 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. (Ord. 18-14 § 1, 2019; Ord. 09-1974 § 1, 2009; Ord. 90-1718 § 1, 1990; 1964 Code § 2.1.)

2.04.020 Regular meetings – Place.

All meetings of the city council and planning commission shall be public and shall be held in the council chamber of the City Hall at 125 East College Street, in the city; provided, that the city council or planning commission may, where anticipated public attendance or other factors require, determine that a particular meeting shall be held at some other location in the city. (Ord. 1225 § 1, 1973; 1964 Code § 2.2.)

2.04.030 Special meetings.

Special meetings of the city council may be called at any time in the manner prescribed by law. (1964 Code § 2.3.)

2.04.040 Council meetings – Disruptive behavior prohibited.

A. While the city council is in formal meeting, the council members shall preserve order and decorum, and no council member, by conversation or otherwise, shall delay or interrupt the proceedings or the peace of the council, disturb any council member while speaking, or refuse to obey the orders of the mayor, the presiding officer of the council, or the council, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.

B. Any person who engages in behavior that actually disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of any city council meeting shall be barred from further audience and attendance at such meeting by the mayor, the presiding officer or a majority of the city council.

C. Examples of behavior that can actually disrupt, disturb, or otherwise impede the orderly conduct of a city council meeting include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Speaking without being recognized by the mayor or the presiding officer.

2. Continuing to speak after the allotted time has expired.

3. Speaking on an item at a time not designated for discussion by the public of that item.

4. Throwing objects.

5. Speaking to the audience rather than to the city council.

6. Interrupting a person who is speaking to the city council during such person’s allotted time.

7. Preventing a person from speaking to the city council during such time as is allocated for comments from the public.

8. Uttering loud, threatening, or abusive language that actually disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the city council meeting.

9. Clapping, whistling, stomping feet, and sign waving that actually disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the city council meeting.

D. The rules of decorum for city council meetings set forth in this section shall be enforced in the following manner:

1. Official Warning. Whenever practicable, the mayor, the presiding officer or a majority of the city council shall give a warning to a person whose behavior is actually disrupting, disturbing, or otherwise impeding the orderly conduct of a city council meeting. The warning shall identify the disruptive behavior and the manner in which the person must comply. A warning shall not be necessary when it would not be effective due to extraordinary circumstances. These extraordinary circumstances include, but are not limited to, the following situations: a warning would be difficult to hear over the noise of the disturbance; there is an immediate threat to public safety; or the disruptive person was warned about the same type of behavior at a city council meeting held within the prior 30 calendar days.

2. Suspension from the Meeting. If a disruptive member of the public does not improve his or her behavior in response to an official warning, then the mayor, the presiding officer or a majority of the city council may issue an order barring that person from the remainder of the city council meeting.

Notwithstanding the above, the mayor, the presiding officer or a majority of the city council may also issue an order barring a person from the remainder of a city council meeting without a warning if there are extraordinary circumstances such as those listed in subsection (D)(1) of this section, and the person engages in behavior that actually disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of a meeting.

3. Removal. If a person barred from the remainder of a city council meeting does not voluntarily exit the council chambers, the mayor, the presiding officer or a city council majority may direct the sergeant-at-arms to remove that person from the council chambers and exclude that person from the remainder of that meeting.

4. Further Measures. No part of this subsection (D) precludes additional action if the above measures are not effective.

E. The following conduct shall be unlawful:

1. Engaging in behavior that actually disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of a city council meeting after receiving a warning at that meeting from the mayor, the presiding officer or a city council majority.

2. Refusing to leave the council chambers after being barred for the remainder of a city council meeting by the mayor, the presiding officer or a city council majority.

3. Returning to the council chambers before the conclusion of a city council meeting after being barred for the remainder of that meeting by the mayor, the presiding officer or a city council majority.

F. The chief of police, or such members of the police department as he or she may designate, shall attend each council meeting and shall be sergeant-at-arms of the city council unless otherwise directed by the city manager. The sergeant-at-arms shall carry out all lawful orders given by the mayor or the presiding officer or a majority of the city council for the purpose of maintaining order at city council meetings. The sergeant-at-arms shall have the authority and power to enforce the orders of the mayor, the presiding officer or a city council majority relating to the order and conduct of city council meetings. Any council member may move to require the mayor or the presiding officer to enforce the rules of conduct and a majority vote of the council shall require him or her to do so.

G. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor unless, in the discretion of the city prosecutor or the city attorney, the violation is prosecuted as an infraction as provided in CMC 1.16.010. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall also be subject to the criminal, administrative, and civil penalties and remedies as provided in CMC Title 1.

H. The mayor, the presiding officer, or the city manager shall be authorized to provide such accommodations for religious or medical reasons as may be needed to enable an individual to attend and participate in the meetings that are required by state or federal law, including, without limitation, the Americans with Disabilities Act and Government Code Section 54954.2.

I. By resolution, the city council may adopt rules of procedure, decorum, and conduct at public meetings as deemed necessary or appropriate by the city council.

J. The provisions of this section shall apply to other legislative bodies of the city, including, without limitation, the planning commission. In applying this section to other legislative bodies, the term “mayor” shall be interpreted to mean the presiding officer of the legislative body, and the term “city council” shall mean the legislative body. (Ord. 20-05 § 1, 2020.)

For statutory provisions regarding city council meetings, see Government Code §§ 36805 – 36811.