(a) The President shall have general control of the Council Chamber and shall preserve order and decorum and shall decide questions of order.
(b) Members called to order. If any member, in speaking or otherwise, transgresses the Rules of Council, the President shall call the offending member to order. The member so called to order shall refrain from further discussion unless permitted by the President to explain. Any member may, by raising the point of order, call the attention of the President to such transgression. The point of order shall be decided by the President without debate.
(c) Members of Council and persons within the Council Chamber shall at all times observe the proper decorum and, while the Council is in session, shall refrain from loud talking and similar disconcerting conduct. Council may punish by expelling from the Council Chamber for the remainder of the meeting, any Council member or audience member for disorderly conduct, or for violation of its rules. In the event a member so disciplined by the Council body shall refuse to voluntarily comply, then in that event only, such steps as may be deemed necessary by the President shall be exercised.
(d) A member of Council or the Administration desiring to speak shall address the President, who shall acknowledge the request of the member, and the member then shall be allowed to speak.
(e) In all cases the member of Council or the Administration who first addresses the President shall speak first, but when two or more members address the President at once, the President shall decide who is to speak first.
(f) No member of Council or the Administration shall be allowed to speak more than five minutes at one time on any question without permission of the President of Council, nor more than five minutes during Miscellaneous Business. No member of Council or the Administration shall speak more than once on the same question until every member of Council desiring to speak on that question has had an opportunity to do so. And, while the member is speaking, no one shall interrupt the member except the President who may confine the member to the question under debate, and who shall prevent personal attacks. The Mayor’s report shall not exceed ten minutes in duration without permission of the President of Council.
(g) When important business demands the presence of absentee Council members, at any regular or special Council meeting, a majority of Council members may direct any city official to notify the absentees of the need for their presence in the Council Chamber at once, and may compel the attendance of absent members.
(h) A motion to adjourn shall always be in order, unless Council is engaged in voting, but being decided in the negative, shall not again be entertained until some motion, call, order or discussion has taken place.
(i) Any member of the audience who wishes to address the Council during Audience Participation must stand at the podium provided and clearly state his/her name and residence address for recording purposes. Audience members must address the Council when speaking. No member of the audience will be allowed to engage in debate with any member of the Council, the Administration or any other member of the Audience. The President of Council shall not recognize any member of the Audience who attempts to speak from his seat or from any location other than the podium. Comments of members of the audience shall be limited to five minutes.
(j) The procedure by any committee holding public hearings shall be as follows: any person desiring to be heard by the committee shall rise when addressing the chairman, give his/her name and address, and state whether or not the person is a bona fide elector of the Municipality and for whom and for what interests he/she appears before the committee. The committee holding such hearings may call upon any one who, in the opinion of the committee, may be able to give additional information on the subject before the committee for a hearing.
(Ord. 2002-54. Passed 5-20-02.)