CHAPTER 1 RULES OF ORDER AND CONDUCT OF OFFICIAL MEETINGS

Chapter 1
RULES OF ORDER AND CONDUCT OF OFFICIAL MEETINGS

Article 2 Meeting Agenda.

Article 3 Motions, Resolutions, Ordinances, Proclamations and Contracts

Article 4 General Order of Discussion Upon a Matter

Article 5 Rules of Debate

200 Purpose.

This Chapter contains a portion of the general policies and rules of interpretation pertaining to the operations of the City Council of the City of Marysville and to the official conduct of its members.

Specific Authority: Art. II, Marysville Charter; Chap. 2.04 MMC; Resolution No. 2013-53

History: New 9/2013

201 Governing Rules.

Except as may otherwise be provided by these rules or by questions of order, the methods of organization and the conduct of business of the Council shall be governed by the procedures set forth in this Part. In the absence of a rule of procedure adopted by the City Council, Robert’s Rules of Order, as amended from time to time, will be used to determine procedure of all meetings of the Council and any standing committee thereof, except where Robert’s is in conflict with the Marysville Charter or Municipal Code or other applicable law.

202 Parliamentarian.

The City Attorney or his designee in his absence shall act as parliamentarian and shall advise and assist the presiding officer in matters of parliamentary law.

203 Quorum.

A majority of the whole number of members of the Council shall constitute a quorum at meetings of the City Council.

(a) Any attending member of the Council who announces a conflict of interest on a matter before the Council or in the proceedings related to that matter shall be deemed present for the purpose of constituting a quorum.

(b) Should no quorum be in attendance within thirty minutes after the hour appointed for the meeting of the Council, the Mayor or the Vice Mayor or, in their absence, the City Clerk or designee, may adjourn the meeting until the next regular business day at the same hour, unless by unanimous agreement those members present select another hour or day. The names of the members present and their action at such meeting shall be recorded in the minutes by the City Clerk.

(c) Unless expressly directed by the Council to the contrary, committees of the Council, whether standing or ad hoc, shall have present at their meetings a majority of their respective memberships in order to conduct their business.

204 Order of Business.

The business of the Council and each of its standing committees shall be taken up for consideration and disposition in accordance with the official agenda prepared for the meeting.

(a) The presiding officer may make any departure from the order of business set forth in the official agenda he deems necessary or appropriate; provided, however, that any Council member may object to the departure and, a majority of members present concurring, the order of business shall not be thus revised.

205 Initiating Action on Matters Requiring Council Approval.

Any ordinance, resolution or other matter or proposal before the Council for action shall be introduced by motion and second of the Mayor or any council member present, whereupon the matter is submitted to discussion and debate and a vote of the council.

206 Method of Voting.

Normally, and as a rule, the vote upon any ordinance, resolution, motion or other matter shall be by voice response, saying "Yes" or "No" when the Mayor calls for each, with the numeric result of the vote announced by the presiding officer in substantially the following manner: "The vote on that measure was 5-0 in favor. The measure is agreed to" or "the vote on that measure was 3-2 against. The measure is not agreed to."

(a) On his own initiative, the Mayor may direct the City Clerk to take a roll call vote of members as an alternative to voice vote upon any ordinance, resolution, motion or other matter; provided however, that any Council member may request a roll call vote be taken upon any such matter, and it shall be done.

(b) Upon every roll call vote the names of the Council members shall be called alphabetically by surname, except that the Mayor or other presiding officer shall always cast his vote last.

(1) In any matter in which the presiding officer has relinquished the chair, the presiding officer shall cast his roll call vote in alphabetical order with the other members.

(2) The City Clerk shall call the roll, tabulate the votes, and announce the result in the manner described above.

207 Disqualification. Conflict of Interest.

Any Council member with a conflict of interest in any ordinance, resolution, motion or other matter before the Council, shall recuse himself by immediately announcing publicly the existence and nature of such conflict, and shall thereafter leave the council chamber for the duration of the consideration of the matter under consideration and shall take no further part in any discussion or action on the matter at issue.

208 Suspension of the Rules.

No rule of procedure adopted by the Council shall be suspended except by vote of a majority of the whole membership of the Council.

209 Adjournment.

A motion to adjourn shall always be in order and decided without debate; provided, however, that the motion shall contain a time to hear the balance of the agenda if the same has not been completed.

210 City Clerk. Minutes.

The City Clerk shall at all times maintain a system for recording the disposition of business appearing before the Council, whether by means of certified shorthand reporting or by electronic audio recording, or by any other means deemed suitable by the City Clerk, and shall, following completion of each meeting of the Council, prepare and produce a summarized report describing each action taken by the Council, noting the names of members present and the votes cast on the matters upon which actions were taken, and such other particulars as may be useful.

(a) Except as may otherwise be required by this Code or by state law, the City Clerk shall not be required to prepare and produce a verbatim transcript of any matter coming before the Council.

(b) Any Council member, the City Manager, or the City Attorney may request that a detailed verbatim transcript be prepared of any matters coming before the Council, and the City Clerk shall prepare and produce the same forthwith.

Article 2. MEETING AGENDA

225 Agenda Required.

There shall be an official agenda for every meeting of the City Council, and of its standing committees, which shall determine the order of business conducted at the meeting.

226 Acting on Matters Off-Agenda Prohibited.

The City Council shall not take action upon any matter, proposal, or other item of business which is not listed upon the official agenda, unless a majority of the Council present at the meeting shall have first consented by vote to the presentation thereof for consideration and action.

227 Deferral of Agenda Matters.

No ordinance, resolution or other matter listed on the agenda for public hearing or the vote thereon may be deferred until a later time unless a majority of the Council present at the meeting shall have first consented by vote to such deferral.

228 Agenda. Construction of.

It is the intent of the City Council that its business be conducted with a maximum of efficiency and information available to members and the public alike.

(a) A portion of the agenda shall be designated as a consent agenda and all matters contained therein shall be voted on without comment or debate in one motion; provided, however, that any Council member may first request that any item(s) be withdrawn from the consent agenda and such item(s) shall be voted on individually in the same manner as other scheduled matters for discussion and action listed on the agenda.

(b) Any matter to come before the Council which is not listed on the consent agenda shall be calendared for separate discussion and action, either as a scheduled matter to be heard at a time certain, or as part of the Council’s regular business of the day.

(c) The agenda for each regular meeting of the Council shall contain a standing item affording the public an opportunity to be heard on matters not otherwise on the agenda.

(d) The agenda for each regular meeting of the Council shall contain a standing item wherein the Administrative Services Manager shall present relevant and timely reports of payroll expenditures, investments and disbursements of funds, and other similar financial transactions under his jurisdiction.

229 Agenda. Preparation of.

The City Manager or designee shall be responsible for the timely preparation and production of the agenda for each meeting of the City Council and of its standing committees, in a form approved by the Mayor.

(a) Unless the Mayor requests otherwise on an item basis, the City Manager shall, subject to the limitations of this Article, decide which matters are to be contained on the consent agenda, and which shall be presented for separate discussion and action.

(b) The City Manager shall establish such additional rules and procedures as may be necessary or convenient to carry out this responsibility including, but not limited to: 1) internal deadlines for submission of agenda items; and 2) forms of transmittal documents and other materials to accompany agenda items.

(c) Matters may be placed on the agenda by any Council member, the City Manager, and the City Attorney, by delivering the same to the City Manager or City Clerk within the time established for preparation and production of the agenda.

(d) Any resident may request, in the manner prescribed in this Section, to be placed on the official agenda of any regular meeting of the City Council and be heard concerning any matter within the jurisdiction of the Council.

(1) Only the Mayor, Council members and the City Manager shall place an item requested by a resident on the official agenda.

(2) Any resident who requests an item be placed on the official agenda of the City Council shall provide the City Manager at the time of the request to appear, a brief written statement concerning the subject matter of his presentation, including therein also:

(A) His name, address, and primary telephone number;

(B) The date of the Council meeting at which he wishes to be heard;

(D) A statement certifying whether he has been, or expects to be, compensated by any third party for making the presentation before the Council.

(3) If multiple requests are received from residents wishing to be placed on the official agenda concerning the same topic, the City Manager may reduce such requests to a single entry on the official agenda.

(4) Whenever a request is made by a resident to be placed on the agenda pursuant to this section, the Mayor, all council members and the City Manager shall be notified of such request forthwith.

230 Consent Agenda. Limitations On.

Notwithstanding any provision of this Code to the contrary, the following matters shall not be contained on the consent agenda of the Council or of any of its standing committees, but shall be calendared for separate discussion and action:

(a) Purchase or sale of real property in fee;

(b) Award of bids or proposals in amounts of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) or more;

(d) Selection or dismissal of the City Attorney.

231 Agenda. Distribution of.

Following its preparation and production, the official agenda for each meeting of the Council and of its standing committees shall be distributed by the City Clerk, together with all relevant supporting documentation.

(a) Each of the following shall receive the official agenda for each meeting of the Council and of its standing committees, not less than seventy-two hours before the appointed hour for commencement of the meeting; provided, however, that this time limitation shall not apply to special meetings and emergency meetings which are called on less than seventy-two hours notice:

(1) Mayor and Council members (with supporting documentation);

(2) Management staff of the City (with supporting documentation);

(3) The City Attorney (with supporting documentation);

(4) City Clerk (with supporting documentation);

(5) Each local news media outlet (with supporting documentation);

(6) Such others as the City Clerk may authorize from time to time.

(b) Any member of the public may request and receive free of charge a copy of the official agenda from the City Clerk; provided, however, that there is no duty to deliver or mail requested agendas and, provided further, that supporting documentation shall be furnished only upon payment of such costs as may appropriately be charged pursuant to law.

(c) The City Clerk shall ensure that an adequate supply of the official agenda is available for public use at each meeting of the Council and of its standing committees.

(d) One complete copy of the official agenda and supporting documentation shall be on file for public inspection in the City Clerk’s Office from the time of its preparation until the conclusion of the meeting.

(e) One complete copy of the official agenda and supporting documentation shall be published on the official website of the City from the time if its preparation until removed in conformity with applicable provisions of public records act.

Article 3. MOTIONS, RESOLUTIONS, ORDINANCES, PROCLAMATIONS AND CONTRACTS

300 Introducing for Passage or Approval.

Ordinances, resolutions and any other matters and subjects requiring formal action by the City Council must be introduced and sponsored by a member; provided, however, that either the City Manager or the City Attorney may, on their own initiative, present ordinances, resolutions, and other matters or subjects to the Council for consideration, and any Council member may assume sponsorship thereof by moving that such ordinances, resolutions, matters or subjects be adopted in accordance with law and policy; otherwise they shall not be considered.

(a) Any member who wishes to introduce an ordinance shall first present to the Council in open session the concept of the ordinance, including its principal objectives.

(1) Unless a majority of the whole membership of the Council objects to the drafting of such ordinance, the City Attorney shall draft the proposed ordinance, as more fully described in Section 304 hereof.

(b) Ordinances may be introduced and adopted by title and shall be read by title only by the City Clerk before consideration by the Council, unless any member requests a reading in full, which request shall be debated and disposed of in the usual manner by majority vote of the members present.

(c) Whenever action cannot be taken because the vote of the Council has resulted in a tie, the status quo shall continue in effect and the proposed ordinance, resolution or motion that produced the tie vote shall be removed from the agenda without prejudice to its reintroduction de novo at a later time.

301 When Action to be Taken by Motion.

Formal action of the City Council may be accomplished in all matters which do not expressly require approval or adoption by resolution or ordinance, by motion duly adopted by a majority of the members present, and recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

(a) Decisions taken by the Council pursuant to this section shall be known as Minute Orders.

302 When Action to be Taken by Resolution or Ordinance.

All actions of the City Council may, and where legally required shall, be taken by resolution or ordinance; provided, however, that any action of the Council which: 1) provides a penalty or establishes a rule or regulation for the violation of which a penalty is imposed; or 2) creates land-use designations or allowable activities within land-use designations, shall be enacted only by ordinance.

303 Approval of Ordinances.

Before presentation to the City Council for action, all ordinances shall have been reduced to writing and shall have been approved as to form and legal content by the City Attorney.

(a) Amendments offered by any Council member to any ordinance being heard and considered by the Council in session shall be available to each member in writing prior to adoption; provided, however, that this requirement shall be waived unless invoked by any member of the Council prior to consideration of the amendment.

304 Preparation of Ordinances.

When requested by the Council or an individual member as provided in Section 300(a), the City Attorney shall prepare ordinances, together with a summarized "Legislative Digest" of each measure, containing the City Attorney’s impartial analysis of its operation of law, its penalties (if any), its assignment of administrative responsibility, its changes to existing law and policy, and such other pertinent matters as may be useful.

(a) Ordinances and Legislative Digests prepared pursuant to this section shall be delivered to the City Manager for his analysis of administrative effect and subsequent inclusion on the official agenda for an upcoming meeting.

305 Proclamations and Similar Ceremonial Instruments.

Any Council member or the City Manager may request that a proclamation or certificate of appreciation or similar ceremonial instrument be issued in the name of the City Council by filing with the City Clerk a draft of the desired instrument or other writing containing the particulars upon which a proclamation or similar instrument can be prepared.

(a) Before it can be issued, each proclamation or similar instrument must be calendared for consideration at a regular meeting of the City Council;

(b) Proclamations and similar instruments may not commit the City Council, the City of Marysville, nor any of its officers, employees or agents to any course of action nor impose upon them any duty of any nature whatsoever;

(c) No proclamation or similar instrument may be issued for valuable consideration of any sort to any member or the City Manager;

(d) No proclamation or similar ceremonial instrument shall have the force of law or policy of the Council or of the City or any of its agencies, departments, divisions or offices.

Article 4. GENERAL ORDER OF DISCUSSION UPON A MATTER

310

Normally, and as a rule, the presiding officer will handle discussion upon any matter appearing on the agenda by following the steps set forth herein, which steps shall serve as a useful guide and not as a requirement.

(a) The presiding officer should clearly announce the agenda item by number and title. Alternatively, the presiding officer may require the City Clerk to make such announcement.

(b) The presiding officer should call upon the appropriate person or persons to report on the item with explanations and recommendations, if any, so as to acquaint the Council and the public with relevant considerations concerning the matter under discussion. The appropriate person or persons may be a staff person or a committee chair or representative of an outside entity, charged with providing input on the agenda item.

(c) The presiding officer should ask Council members if they have any technical questions of clarification, including questions of the person or persons who reported on the item, and that person or persons should be given time to respond.

(d) The presiding officer should invite public comments upon the matter or, if the matter under discussion is a noticed public hearing, he should open the public hearing for public comment. If numerous members of the public indicate a desire to speak to the subject, the presiding officer may limit the time of public speakers. At the conclusion of public comments, the presiding officer should announce that the public comment period, or the public hearing, as appropriate, is closed to further input.

(e) The presiding officer should invite a motion upon the matter under discussion. If a motion is offered, the presiding officer should announce the name of the member who makes the motion, and ask whether any other member wishes to second the motion as offered.

(f) If the motion is made and seconded, the chair should make certain that all members understand the motion before continuing. He may do this by repeating the motion or, alternatively, he may direct the City Clerk to repeat the motion as recorded by the Clerk.

(g) With a motion and second duly made, the presiding officer should open the matter to the Council for debate and discussion on the motion. If there is no discussion, or after the discussion has ended, the vote on the motion should proceed immediately, as more fully described in Section 206 hereof.

Article 5. RULES OF DEBATE

325 Intent.

It is the intent of the City Council that these rules of debate shall serve to ensure that the public’s business be thoroughly and thoughtfully debated, to the end that all members shall be heard without rancor, and all positions be publicly aired.

326 Getting the Floor.

Every member desiring to speak for any purpose shall address the Mayor or other presiding officer and, upon recognition, shall confine himself to the question under debate.

327 Interruption.

A member once recognized shall not be interrupted when speaking unless it be to call him to order or as herein otherwise provided.

(a) If a member while speaking should be called to order, he shall cease speaking until the presiding officer can rule on the question of order and, if in order, he shall be permitted to proceed.

(b) Any member may appeal to the Council from the decision of the presiding officer upon a question of order, whereupon the presiding officer shall submit to the Council, without debate, the question, "Shall the decision of the chair be sustained?" and the Council shall decide by a majority vote of the members present.

328 Privilege of Closing Debate.

The privilege of closing debate on any ordinance, resolution or motion goes to the Council member moving adoption of the measure.

329 Roll Call.

Upon any roll call there shall be no discussion by any member prior to voting, and he shall vote Yes or No.

(a) Any member, upon voting, may be recognized by the Mayor to give a brief statement to explain his vote.

(b) A member shall have the privilege of filing with the City Clerk a written explanation of his vote for inclusion in the record, provided the same shall not exceed 150 words and shall be filed within 48 hours of the close of the meeting at which the vote took place.

330 Motion for Reconsideration.

Once action is taken on a proposed ordinance, resolution or motion, neither the exact same ordinance, resolution or motion nor its repeal or recession may be brought before the Council during the two months period following the said action unless a majority of the members of the Council present first consent to its reconsideration for adoption, repeal or recession.

(a) A motion for reconsideration of an ordinance, resolution or motion acted upon earlier during the same meeting may only be tabled by a member who voted with the majority on the original action.