These rules, consistent with any applicable town ordinance, statute or other legal requirement, shall govern the proceedings of the Town Council.
(A) Authority of the Chair. Subject to appeal to the full Town Council, the Council President (or presiding officer) shall have the authority to prevent the misuse of motions, the abuse of any privilege, or the obstruction of the business of the Town Council by ruling any such matter out of order (the authority of the “Chair”). In so ruling, the Town Council President shall be courteous and fair and should presume that the moving party is acting in good faith. Any member of the Town Council may move to require enforcement of the rules, and the affirmative vote of a majority of the Town Council shall require the presiding officer to act.
(B) Town Council President to facilitate Council meetings. In the role of facilitator, the Town Council President (or presiding officer) will assist the Town Council in focusing agenda discussions and deliberations.
(C) Ordinances and resolutions; synopsis and reading.
(1) Each ordinance or resolution submitted to the Town Council shall be prefaced by a short, non-technical synopsis of the legislation which is comprehensible to the average citizen. Where possible the synopsis shall reference by number material sections of the code of ordinances proposed to be created or amended thereby.
(2) Except when otherwise required by a majority vote of the Council, the synopsis (only) shall be read aloud whenever the ordinance or resolution it accompanies is introduced and at the time of subsequent Council action on such ordinance or resolution. The synopsis shall become a part of the record with respect to such legislation, but shall not have the legal effect of being part of the legislation.
(D) Council deliberation and order of speakers. The Town Council President (or presiding officer) has been delegated the responsibility to control the debate and the order of speakers. Speakers will generally be called upon in the order of the request to speak. With the concurrence of the Town Council President, a Council member holding the floor may address a question to another Council member and that Council member may respond while the floor is still held by the Council member asking the question. A Council member may opt not to answer a question while another Council member has the floor.
(E) Limit deliberations to item at hand. Council members will limit their comments to the subject matter, time or motion being currently considered by the Town Council.
(F) Length of Council comments. Council members will govern themselves as to the length of their comments or presentation. As a courtesy, the Town Council President will signal by hand to a Council member who has been speaking for over five minutes. This procedure is not meant to limit debate or to cut comments short, but rather to assist Council members in their efforts to communicate concisely.
(G) Obtaining the floor. Any member of the Town Council wishing to speak must first obtain the floor by being recognized by the Town Council President. The Town Council President must recognize any Council member who seeks the floor when appropriately entitled to do so.
(H) Motions. Motions may be made by any member of the Town Council, including the presiding officer (if not the Town Council President); provided that, before the presiding officer offers a motion, the opportunity for making a motion should be offered to other members of the Town Council. Any member of the Town Council, other than the person offering the motion, may second a motion.
(I) Procedures for motions. The following is the general procedure for making motions.
(1) Before a motion can be considered or debated, it must be seconded.
(2) A Council member who wishes to make a motion should do so through a verbal request to the Town Council President.
(3) A Council member who wishes to second a motion should do so through a verbal request to the Town Council President.
(4) Once the motion has been properly made and seconded, the Town Council President shall open the matter for discussion offering the first opportunity to the moving party and, thereafter, to any Council member properly recognized by the Town Council President.
(5) Once the matter has been fully discussed and the Town Council President calls for a vote, no further discussion will be allowed; provided, however, Council members may be allowed to explain their vote.
(J) Motion amendments. When a motion is on the floor and an amendment is offered, the amendment should be acted upon prior to acting on the main motion. No motion of a subject different from that under consideration shall be admitted as an amendment. A motion to amend an amendment shall be in order, but one to amend an amendment to an amendment shall not be in order. Action shall be taken on the amended amendment prior to any other action to further amend the original motion.
(K) Motion to continue. A motion to continue will leave the motion in its present condition for consideration on a certain date and time.
(L) Motion to remove. A motion to remove will take the matter off the agenda and will not be considered by the Council for an indefinite period of time.
(M) Motion to postpone indefinitely. A motion to postpone indefinitely will kill or reject the item under consideration.
(N) Motion to refer. A motion to refer forwards the item under consideration to the named group, committee or board for further study.
(O) Motion to lay on the table. A motion to lay on the table will delay consideration of the item being discussed by the Town Council and allows the item to be temporarily set aside.
(P) Motion to take from the table. A motion to take from the table allows the matter to be discussed again and would only be used in conjunction with a motion to lay on the table at the same meeting.
(Q) Withdrawal of motion. A withdrawal of motion indicates a motion may be withdrawn or modified by the Council member who originally made the motion at any time prior to its passage. If the motion is modified, the Council member who seconded the motion may withdraw his or her second.
(R) Motion for reconsideration. A motion for reconsideration may be made at the same meeting or at the next succeeding meeting following a Town Council action, as long as the reconsideration request complies with the requirements of the state’s Open Door Law, being I.C. 5-14-1.5. A motion for reconsideration may only be made by a Council member who voted with the majority of the Town Council on the action proposed to be reconsidered by the Town Council. Any member of the Town Council may second a motion for reconsideration.
(S) Voting.
(1) Abstention.
(a) If a Council member abstains because of a legal conflict, he or she is not counted as present for quorum purposes and is not deemed to be “voting” for purposes of determining whether there has been a “majority vote of those voting and present”.
(b) When a Council member abstains or excuses himself or herself from a portion of a Council meeting because of a legal conflict of interest, the Council member may be given an opportunity to briefly state, on the record, the nature of the conflict.
(2) Tie votes. A tie vote shall be broken by the town’s Clerk-Treasurer.
(3) Statute voting requirements. Some actions taken by the Town Council require more than a simple majority vote of approval as required by either town ordinance or state statutes. Those established ordinances or state statutes must be followed.
(T) Non-observance of rules. Rules adopted to expedite and facilitate the transaction of the business of the Town Council in an orderly fashion shall be deemed to be procedural only, and the failure to strictly observe any such rules shall not affect the jurisdiction of, or invalidate any action taken by, the Town Council.
(U) Public hearings.
(1) Continuance of hearings. Any public hearing being held, noticed or ordered to be held by the Town Council may, by order, notice or motion, be continued to any subsequent meeting.
(2) Public discussion at hearings. When a matter for public hearing comes before the Town Council, the Town Council President will open the public hearing. Upon opening the public hearing and before any motion is adopted related to the merits of the issue to be heard, the Town Council President shall inquire if there is anyone present who desires to speak on the matter which is to be heard or to present evidence regarding the matter.
(a) Public member request to speak. Any person wishing to speak at a public hearing scheduled on the agenda may complete a public meeting appearance form prior to the matter being reached on the agenda and present it to the town’s Clerk-Treasurer. Upon being recognized by the Town Council President, the person may speak or present evidence relevant to the matter being heard. No person may speak without first being recognized by the Town Council President. All persons wishing to speak on the matter shall be limited to three minutes each and there shall be a cumulative limit of 60 minutes for all those speaking in favor of an item and a like limit for those speaking in opposition. The time limit may be extended by a majority vote of the Town Council.
(b) Time limits. The Town Council President, with the concurrence of the Town Council, may alter any of the enumerated time allocations based on the complexity of the item and the number of persons wishing to speak on the item.
(c) Questions of speakers. Members of the Town Council who wish to ask questions of the speakers or each other during the public hearing portion may do so, but only after first being recognized by the Town Council President. Interaction with the speaker shall be limited to a question or questions, rather than an ongoing dialogue.
(d) Materials for public record. All persons interested in the matter being heard by the Town Council shall be entitled to submit written evidence or remarks, as well as other graphic evidence. All such evidence presented will be retained by the Town Clerk-Treasurer’s office as part of the record of the hearing, in accordance with the requirements of state law.
(e) Germane comments. During the public hearing, no person will be permitted to speak about matters or present evidence which is not germane to the matter being considered. A determination of relevance shall be made by the Town Council President, but may be appealed to the full Town Council.
(V) Communications and petitions. Written communications and petitions concerning the subject matter of the hearing will be noted, read aloud or summarized by the Town Council President. A reading in full shall take place if requested by any member of the Town Council.
(W) Addressing the Town Council.
(1) Staff presentations. Staff presentations will be concise and provide factual background information on the item under discussion. The presentation may, when requested, also include a recommendation to the Town Council.
(2) Oral presentations by members of the public. The following procedures will guide oral presentations by members of the public at Town Council meetings.
(a) Prior to the meeting or during the meeting prior to a matter being reached on the agenda, persons wishing to address the Town Council should complete a public meeting appearance form and present it to the Town Clerk-Treasurer.
(b) When called upon, the person should come to the podium state his or her name and address for the record and, if speaking for an organization or other group, identify the group represented.
(c) All remarks should be addressed to the Town Council as a whole, not to individual members.
(d) Questions, if any, should be directed to the presiding officer who will determine whether, or in what manner, an answer will be provided.
(3) Citizens’ comments. This portion of the Town Council meeting is set aside for members of the public to address the Town Council on any item of business that is not formally scheduled on the agenda or scheduled as a public hearing. Members of the public should complete a public meeting appearance form prior to the item being heard and present it to the Town Clerk-Treasurer.
(a) Timing. Citizens’ comments are generally permitted at the beginning of the regular Town Council meeting, as specified on the agenda. Presentations shall be limited to three minutes each, but may be extended for an additional two minutes with approval of a majority of the Town Council. Citizens’ comments shall be limited to a cumulative total not to exceed 15 minutes for all speakers.
(b) Town business. Presentations under citizens’ comments are limited to items within the subject matter jurisdiction of the town.
(c) No Council deliberations. In compliance with the state’s Open Door Laws, being I.C. 5-14-1.5, the Town Council may not deliberate or vote on any matter raised in citizens’ comments, except for the purpose of determining whether such matter should be placed on a future Town Council agenda. The Town Council President, however, may request that the Town Superintendent provide additional information on a matter of general interest to the full Town Council, the public at large, and to the citizen making the comment.
(4) PowerPoint presentations. Members of the public may present a PowerPoint software presentation to the Town Council utilizing the town’s audio/visual equipment (if available) or their own equipment.
(a) All PowerPoint presentations must comply with applicable time limits for oral presentations and cumulative time limits. Presentations should be planned with flexibility to adjust to any changes in these time limits.
(b) All PowerPoint presentations must be submitted to the Town Clerk-Treasurer, or appropriate staff, on disks already formatted in PowerPoint no later than noon on the day of the Town Council meeting to allow for virus checks and confirm compatibility with town equipment.
(c) Any disks submitted believed to contain viruses or are unable to be scanned for viruses by town equipment will not be permitted to be used on town equipment.
(d) If compatibility or viruses are at issue, a member of the public may provide a printed hard copy of the PowerPoint presentation to be projected onto the screen via a visual projector during the presentation or run the PowerPoint presentation on their own equipment.
(5) Public meeting appearance forms. Public meeting appearance forms may be used by members of the public who do not wish to or cannot verbally address the Town Council during a meeting. A person may indicate his or her comments and support or opposition for an agenda item on a public meeting appearance form. During the public testimony regarding the item, the Town Council President will indicate that the Town Council has received written comments from (name of persons) in support of the project or issue and from (name of persons) in opposition. The minutes will reflect the Town Council’s receipt of written comments in support or opposition of the project or issue.
(6) Repetitious comments prohibited.
(a) A speaker shall not present the same or substantially the same items or arguments to the Council repeatedly or be repetitious in presenting their oral comments. Nothing in the foregoing precludes submission of comments to the Town Council in writing, for such action or non-action as the Council, in its discretion, may deem appropriate.
(b) In order to expedite matters and to avoid repetitious presentations, the designation of a spokesperson is encouraged. Whenever any group of individuals wishes to address the Council on the same subject matter, those individuals are encouraged to designate a spokesperson to address the Town Council. With the consent of the Town Council, the Town Council President may extend the time allocation for a designated spokesperson.
(X) Waiver of rules. Any of the foregoing rules may be waived or suspended by a majority vote of the Council members present when it is deemed that there is good cause to do so, based upon the particular facts and circumstances involved.
(Y) Non-exclusive rules. The rules set forth are not exclusive and do not limit the inherent power and general legal authority of the Town Council, or of its presiding officer, to govern the conduct of Town Council meetings as may be considered appropriate from time to time, or in particular circumstances, for purposes of orderly and effective conduct of the affairs of the town.
(Z) Council member administrative support.
(1) Mail. All general mail received at the Town Hall will be opened by the Town Clerk-Treasurer and date stamped and distributed to individual Council members.
(a) Letters addressed to the Town Council President and Town Council. All letters addressed to the Town Council President and Town Council requiring a response will be copied to all Council members with a note as to which staff person will be preparing a response for the Town Council President’s signature. A copy of the response, along with the original letter, will be provided to each Council member. Letters addressed to the Town Council President and Town Council that do not require a response but provide information on Town Council agenda items or like matters are copied to the full Town Council.
(b) Letters addressed to individual Council members. All letters addressed to individual Council members requiring a response are copied to all Council members with a note as to which person will be preparing a response for the addressee’s signature. Copies of the responses, along with the original letters, are provided to the full Town Council. Letters addressed to individual Council members that do not require a response from staff, but provide information on Town Council matters are copied to the full Town Council. Forms and other Council member mail marked “personal” will not be opened and will not be copied to the full Town Council.
(2) E-mail. The Town may provide email accounts for each Council member who desires the same. The same shall be for the purpose of conducting town business. The account and all associated mail, folders and correspondence shall be in accordance with the rules and regulations established by the Huntington City-County Information Systems.
(3) Town Council correspondence.
(a) All Council member cor-respondence prepared with town resources (letterhead, typing, staff support, postage and the like) will reflect the position of the full Town Council, not individual Council member’s positions.
(b) Town Council members will be provided individual stationery and envelopes to use for official communications reflecting their individual position as a Council member.
(4) Clerical support. The Town Clerk-Treasurer will coordinate the typing of correspondence requested by individual Council members. All correspondence typed for Council members will be on town letterhead and will reflect the position of the full Town Council and will be copied to the full Town Council.
(5) Master calendar. A master calendar of Town Council events, functions or meetings will be maintained by the Town Clerk-Treasurer’s office and provided to the full Town Council. Functions, events or meetings to be attended by individual Council members will only be included on the master calendar at the request of individual Council members.
(6) Requests for research or information. Council members may request information or research from staff on a given topic through the Town Clerk-Treasurer. Requests for policy direction will be brought to the full Town Council at a regular or special meeting for consideration. All written products will be copied to the full Town Council.
(7) Town Council notification of significant incidents. In conjunction with the town’s public safety departments, the Town Clerk-Treasurer’s office will coordinate the notification to the Town Council of major crime, fire or other disasters or incidents which may have a significant negative impact on the town or its citizens. The Clerk-Treasurer shall make reasonable attempts to contact the current Council President, who shall in turn make reasonable attempts to notify the remainder Council members.
(AA) Annual review of Town Council procedures. The Town Council will review and revise this section as needed, and at a minimum, every year during the Council organizational meeting.
(BB) Adherence to procedures. During Town Council discussions, deliberations and proceedings, the Town Council President has been delegated the primary responsibility to ensure that the Town Council, staff and members of the public adhere to the Council’s adopted procedures.
(CC) Town Attorney as procedure advisor. The Town Attorney assists the Town Council President and Town Council as a resource and as an advisor for interpreting the Town Council’s adopted rules and procedures.
(Res. 2020-05, passed 9-1-2020)