The public comment policy for Henry County Board of Commissioners meetings is not changing. At all.
Several possible changes were considered at the board’s October 15 regular meeting, all of which were suggested by various commissioners according to county attorney Patrick Jaugstetter.
The current rules allow for each citizen who signs up at a specific meeting to be allotted five minutes, with the possibility of having that time extended by a majority vote of the commissioners. Any county issue can be addressed, with prohibitions regarding personal attacks against board members or county staff. Typically the public comment period is at the end of the meeting, although Jaugstetter pointed out that is not stipulated in the ordinance and can be placed anywhere on the agenda at the board’s discretion.
Among the suggested changes were reducing each person’s allotted time from five minutes to three, setting a 30-minute maximum for all citizens to speak, and restrict citizen comments to items on that meeting’s agenda.
“These requests came from commissioners,” said Jaugstetter. “Staff doesn’t really have a position on any of them. We will create an ordinance that you direct us to create.”
Wood acknowledged that she was the one who recommended placing public comments at or near the beginning of the agenda, pointing out that at the exact moment she was making these comments it was after 10 p.m. at the end of a 4 1/2-hour meeting. She mentioned that she had favored the 30-minute overall public comment period but did not want to limit the topic as long as it was a county matter.
During her remarks, Wood apologized personally to Robert Kolpak, whose experience at the previous meeting was detailed in the Times two weeks ago. Wood said she had spoken to him before the October 1 morning meeting and he told her he had already signed up to speak before leaving for a doctor appointment with plans to return. The agenda was amended that morning, with Vivian Thomas requesting to move public comment to the beginning of the meeting. Wood said she voted in favor of that because it was part of several agenda changes in a single motion, but she shouldn’t have done so.
Thomas, who never explained why she made the unusual request to move public comment during the October 1 meeting, stated during this discussion that she was the one who suggested a three-minute limit per person but is in favor of allowing as much citizen comment as possible. “Your public comments are welcome. What you are trying to say is welcome. We are here to listen to what you have to say,” she said.
Dee Clemmons did not agree with any of the proposed changes, saying that public comments should remain at the end of the meeting so county business can get done, but there should not be a limit on how many people speak. She pointed out that citizens can come to the morning meetings if the evening sessions run too late.
Johnny Wilson and Gary Barham both took the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fit it” approach and saw no need to change anything. “I think what we have is working,” said Wilson.
Wood made a motion to allow 30 total minutes per meeting for public comment at three minutes per person and any county issue allowed as a topic. Her motion died for lack of a second.
Thomas then moved to keep public comments at three minutes each but with no limit on the number of speakers per meeting. That motion failed because of a 3-3 vote with Wood, Barham and Wilson in opposition.
Clemmons then made a motion that essentially left everything as it already was, and that passed 5-0-1 with Thomas abstaining. She gave no reason why.
This was actually the last item of county business on the evening’s agenda, and it was followed by the actual public comment period for that meeting. Eleven citizens signed up to speak, although at least two of them left the meeting before speaking because of the late hour.
