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The city shall have the power to revise the ordinances of the city from time to time and publish the same in book form. The revision shall be evidenced by a general codification ordinance which shall repeal all other ordinances in conflict and embrace as the governing law of the city all provisions therein. All ordinances in force at the time of the codification shall continue in force for the purpose of all rights acquired, fines, penalties, forfeitures, and liabilities incurred.
(Prior Code, § 1-104)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. RS 16-247
MEETINGS
(A) For the purpose of this subchapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
MEETINGS. All regular, special, or called meetings, formal or informal, of a public body for the purposes of briefing, discussion of public business, formation of tentative policy, or the taking of any action.
(Prior Code, § 1-601)
PUBLIC BODY.
(a) The governing body of the city;
(b) All independent boards, commissions, bureaus, committees, councils, subunits, or any other bodies now or hereafter created pursuant to law;
(c) Advisory committees of the bodies listed above; and
(d) Instrumentalities exercising essentially public functions.
(B) This subchapter shall not apply to subcommittees of the bodies unless a quorum of the public body attends a subcommittee meeting or unless the subcommittees are holding hearings, making policy, or taking formal action on behalf of their parent body.
(Prior Code, § 1-602)
(Ord. 1707, passed 10-3-1983) (Ord. 2005-2723, passed 2-7-2005)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. 84-1409(2)
(A) The formation of public policy is public business and may not be conducted in secret. Every meeting of a public body shall be open to the public in order that citizens may exercise their democratic privilege of attending and speaking at meetings of public bodies, except as otherwise provided by the Constitution of Nebraska, federal statutes, and the Open Meetings Act.
(B) (1) Each public body shall give reasonable advance publicized notice of the time and place of each meeting as provided in division (B)(2) of this section. The notice shall be transmitted to all members of the public body and to the public.
(2) The notice shall be published by:
(a) Publication in a newspaper of general circulation within the public body's jurisdiction and, if available, on such newspaper's website; or
(b) Posting written notice in three conspicuous public places in the city. The notice shall be posted in the same three places for each meeting.
(3) In addition to a method of notice required by division (B)(2) of this section, the notice shall also be provided by any other appropriate method designated by the public body.
(4) Each public body shall record the methods and dates of the notice in its minutes.
(5) The notice shall contain an agenda of subjects known at the time of the publicized notice or a statement that the agenda, which shall be kept continually current, is readily available for public inspection at the office of the public body during normal business hours. Agenda items shall be sufficiently descriptive to give the public reasonable notice of the matters to be considered at the meeting. Except for items of an emergency nature, the agenda shall not be altered later than 24 hours before the scheduled commencement of the meeting or 48 hours before the scheduled commencement of a meeting of the City Council scheduled outside the corporate limits of the city. The public body shall have the right to modify the agenda to include items of an emergency nature only at such public meeting.
(Prior Code, § 1-603) (Ord. 2005-2723, passed 2-7-2005; Ord. 2006-2773, passed 7-3-2006; Ord. 2021-3031, passed 10-18-2021)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. RS 84-1408, 84-1411
(A) Any public body may hold a closed session by the affirmative vote of a majority of its voting members if a closed session is clearly necessary for the protection of the public interest or for the prevention of needless injury to the reputation of an individual and if the individual has not requested a public meeting. The subject matter and the reason necessitating the closed session shall be identified in the motion to close. Closed sessions may be held for, but shall not be limited to, such reasons as:
(1) Strategy sessions with respect to collective bargaining, real estate purchases, pending litigation or litigation which is imminent as evidenced by communication of a claim or threat of litigation to or by the public body;
(2) Discussion regarding deployment of security personnel or devices;
(3) Investigative proceedings regarding allegations of criminal misconduct; or
(4) Evaluation of the job performance of a person when necessary to prevent needless injury to the reputation of a person and if the person has not requested a public meeting.
(B) Nothing in this section shall permit a closed meeting for discussion of the appointment or election of a new member to any public body.
(C) The vote to hold a closed session shall be taken in open session. The entire motion, the vote of each member on the question of holding a closed session, and the time when the closed session commenced and concluded shall be recorded in the minutes. If the motion to close passes, then the presiding officer immediately prior to the closed session shall restate on the record the limitation of the subject matter of the closed session. The public body holding such a closed session shall restrict its consideration to matters during the closed portions to only those purposes set forth in the motion to close as the reason for the closed session. The meeting shall be reconvened in open session before any formal action may be taken. For purposes of this section,
FORMAL ACTION shall mean a collective decision or a collective commitment or promise to make a decision on any question, motion, proposal, resolution, order, or ordinance or formation of a position or policy, but shall not include negotiating guidance given by members of the public body to legal counsel or other negotiators in closed sessions authorized under division (A)(1) of this section.
(D) (1) Any member of the public body shall have the right to challenge the continuation of a closed session if the member determines that the session has exceeded the reason stated in the original motion to hold a closed session or if the member contends that the closed session is neither clearly necessary for:
(a) The protection of the public interest; or
(b) The prevention of needless injury to the reputation of an individual.
(2) The challenge shall be overruled only by a majority vote of the members of the public body. The challenge and its disposition shall be recorded in the minutes.
(E) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require that any meeting be closed to the public. No person or public body shall fail to invite a portion of its members to a meeting and no public body shall designate itself a subcommittee of the whole body for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of this chapter. No closed session, informal meeting, chance meeting, social gathering, e-mail, fax, or electronic communication shall be used for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of this chapter.
(F) This chapter shall not apply to chance meetings, or to attendance at or travel to conventions or workshops of members of a public body at which there is no meeting of the body then intentionally convened, if there is no vote or other action taken regarding any matter over which the public body has supervision, control, jurisdiction, or advisory power.
(Prior Code, § 1-604) (Ord. 2005-2723, passed 2-7-2005; Ord. 2006-2773, passed 7-3-2006)
When it is necessary to hold an emergency meeting without reasonable advance public notice, the nature of the emergency shall be stated in the minutes and any formal action taken in the meeting shall pertain only to the emergency. The emergency meetings may be held by means of electronic or telecommunication equipment. The provisions of § 31.21 of this chapter shall be complied with in conducting emergency meetings. Complete minutes of the emergency meetings specifying the nature of the emergency and any formal action taken at the meeting shall be made available to the public by no later than the end of the next regular business day.
(Prior Code, § 1-605) (Ord. 1707, passed 10-3-1983; Ord. 2005-2723, passed 2-7-2005)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. RS 84-1411
Each public body shall keep minutes of all meetings showing the time, place, members present and absent, and the substance of all matters discussed. The minutes of all meetings and evidence and documentation received or disclosed in open session shall be public records and open to public inspection during normal business hours. Minutes shall be written and available for inspection within ten working days, or prior to the next convened meeting, whichever occurs earlier.
(Prior Code, § 1-606) (Ord. 2005-2723, passed 2-7-2005)
Statutory reference:
Similar state law provisions, see Neb. RS 84-1412, 84-1413
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