SUBJECT:
Title
Discussion: Council Rules of Procedure; Council Codes of Ethics & Conduct; Virtual Meeting Policy
Department
DEPARTMENT: Administrative Operations
Presenter
PRESENTER(S): Meredyth Muth, Director of Administrative Services & Operations
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Time
TIME ESTIMATE: 75 minutes
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For time estimate: please put 0 for Consent items.
Fiscal
FISCAL SUMMARY:
N/A
Policy
POLICY ISSUES:
The items under discussion all pertain to Council process and require Council approval for updates. Changes are needed to bring these policies into alignment with the Home Rule Charter or current meeting practices.
Recommendation
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Discuss the proposed changes and give staff direction on what changes to make before the items come back to Council for final consideration and approval.
Body
SUMMARY/KEY POINTS
The three following policies need to be updated. Council members should weigh in on what they would like to see in the policies moving forward:
• Council Rules of Procedure - Proposed changes align the Rules with the Home Rule Charter and with current meeting practices.
• Codes of Ethics & Conduct - The Home Rule Charter requires Town Council to adopt and maintain by ordinance a Code of Conduct and Ethics. The current Code of Conduct was adopted by resolution. The proposed ordinance adopts a new Code of Ethics and new Code of Conduct.
• Virtual Meeting Policy - The current virtual meeting policy was last updated in 2024. The proposed update rewrites it to include use of current technology and best practices.
In addition, these policies will pertain to all the Town’s Boards and Commissions. Council should decide if any of these policies should not pertain to the boards or if boards should have separate policies specific to them.
BACKGROUND OF SUBJECT MATTER:
Rules of Procedure
The most significant proposed changes to the Rules of Procedure include:
• Notes that public comments must be taken at Special Meetings as required in the Home Rule Charter (Article 4.03(3)).
• Clarifies how a Special Meeting may be called per the Home Rule Charter (Article 4.04(1)).
• Removes the requirement that public speakers give their full address when speaking.
• Limits to six minutes the amount of time members of the public may pool their time.
• Aligns the Rules with the Virtual Participation policy.
• Requires roll call votes to be randomized among Councilmembers with the Mayor voting last.
• Additional updates to grammar and clean up.
Additional minor changes to align the Rules with current meeting practices and grammatical changes have been made in the attached draft.
Codes of Ethics and Conduct
• The Code of Ethics is contained in the ordinance and will be codified. It covers issues including conflicts of interest; gifts; requisite disclosures; the appearance of impropriety; advisory opinions; and complaints.
• The Code of Conduct is adopted with the Code of Ethics; however, it is a separate document that is not codified. It covers items including roles and responsibilities as well as policies and protocol related to conduct with councilmembers, board members, staff, and members of the public.
Virtual Participation and Virtual Meeting Policy
The addition of equipment in the new Council Chambers allows more options than we had in the old Chambers and the proposed policy brings it more in line with current practices in other municipalities. Updates include the following:
• Allows for members to attend virtually if they are sick or traveling if it is feasible.
• Notes that if a member attending remotely has technical issues, the in-person meeting will continue without them.
• To facilitate a good meeting, it requires the meeting to be run by a member attending in person.
• Ensures members of the public will have the opportunity to give comments virtually.
• Allows the option of a fully virtual meeting if needed due to weather, safety, or other emergency.
priorities
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attachments
ATTACHMENT(S):
1. Rules of Procedure - Clean
2. Rules of Procedure - Redlined
3. Code of Ethics Ordinance
4. Code of Conduct
5. Virtual Participation and Meeting Policy - Clean
6. Virtual Participation and Meeting Policy - Redlined