Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here.
Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here.
Healdsburg: Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Windsor: The meetings are held on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 6pm in the Civic Center Council Chambers 9291 Old Redwood Highway, Building 400, Windsor. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here. Santa Rosa: Regular meetings of the City Council are usually held each Tuesday (there is no City Council meeting on a Tuesday that follows a legal holiday OR on the fourth Tuesday of the month) at City Hall, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue. The public portions of regular meetings which are held in the Council Chambers at City Hall generally begin at 4:00 p.m. Public study session(s) and closed session(s) portions of regular meetings, when held, are usually held in Room 10, City Hall earlier in the afternoon. The public is welcome to attend and participate in all public sessions of the Council. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here. Cotati: The Cotati City Council meets on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chamber located at 201 West Sierra Avenue, Cotati. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here. Rohnert Park: City Council meetings are held on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month in the City Hall Council Chamber. Meetings officially begin at 5:00 p.m. 130 Avram Avenue, Rohnert Park, California Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here.
Petaluma: Meeting are held on different Monday evenings each month at 7pm in Council Chambers, City Hall, 11 English Street, Petaluma. Will have to check website for exact date of meeting as they do not have a calendar posted. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here.
Sebastopol: Generally, the City Council meets on first and third Tuesdays of each month. All meetings begin at 6:00 pm. Unless noted, the meeting location is at Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris Street in Sebastopol. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here. Sonoma: Meetings are held the first and third Monday of the month at 6pm at Community Meeting Room, 177 First Street West, Sonoma. Find out the AGENDA for the next meeting here.
1. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC
City Council Meeting Basics The easiest way to stay informed is to subscribe to your City’s website, usually found on the City Council’s page. After you subscribe,you will be sent the dates of upcoming meetings, canceled meetings, special meetings and agenda notifications. All cities must make the agenda available to the public and it should be placed in an accessible location where the meeting is to be held. Agendas are also available on the city’s official site for you to download or read. It’s strongly suggested that you review the agenda items before you attend the meeting. You have the right to speak on any and all issues of concern, however there is limited time allocated to this action. The City must abide by the agenda and if there is any incorrect information or items omitted or not followed by Council, you have the right to inform the members and require them make the necessary corrections. Agenda and Minutes All agendas are posted within a 72 hour time period before each council meeting. It is our responsibility to inform the City (make sure they are doing their job) if the agenda was not posted in a timely manner or made available to each citizen in attendance at a meeting. After each meeting, the City should post minutes the next day for the public viewing. It is the responsibility of the citizens to bring any discrepancies in the minutes to the attention of the Council and require the minutes be corrected by the City in a timely manner. As citizens, we are able to make necessary corrections known to the Council during the appropriate time accorded in the Agenda. I have seen council members ignore corrections from the public and vote to “Approve” the minutes as recorded. This behavior must not be allowed and we must hold the council members accountable. Remember, you are able to be heard on each item on the agenda. Our comments are recorded as pro or con to the issue at hand. It is important to go to the website and check for posted minutes and to assure your comment was summarized accurately. Speaking Before the Council The public is allowed to speak on anything they wish to during “Citizen’s Business” excluding any item which is on the agenda. This is usually a good time for rebuttal from the prior meeting and you will notice the meetings are conducted in such a way; they will have the last word. You can also speak on any or each item on the agenda. Each City conducts their meetings a little differently than others, but they all must abide by protocol lined out by “The Brown Act”. There is a time limit to our comments (usually 3 minutes) and you may be instructed to fill out a simple card in order to speak. It’s important to go over the agenda before a meeting. There will be times you may want to speak on several items and preparing your thoughts into a 3 minute condensed form isn’t as easy as it seems, but our voice is heard and does make a difference. It’s important to keep in mind that your time is yours and you can say or do what you please that is in reason and lawful and the council can not interrupt you nor deny you time. Video/podcast recorded Council Meetings Each City should have a form of documented video/audio record posted on their site of each council meeting for the public to access. Most cities are videotaped. These videos or podcasts are a valuable source in our interaction with Government Officials. I have often gone back and transcribed parts of the podcast. I then use their own exact verbiage to the individual council member during citizen’s business. It is our right to keep our local officials in check and call them out on improper behavior and questionable governing. It is our right to record, take videos and still pictures as long as we are not disruptive. We can go back to these tools and collect specific language and quotes with accuracy. It is essential, to use these tools to hold our public officials accountable.
The Brown Act It is important for each of us to know our rights. We must become we educated on “The Brown Act” as we take on our role as active, concerned citizens. A site to download The Brown Act in a PDF form is included below. The Brown Act was enacted in response to mounting public concerns over informal, undisclosed meetings held by local elected officials. City councils, county boards, and other local government bodies were avoiding public scrutiny by holding secret "workshops" and "study sessions." The Brown Act solely applies to California city and county government agencies, boards, and councils. The introduction to the Brown Act describes its purpose and intent:[2]In enacting this chapter, the Legislature finds and declares that the public commissions, boards and councils and the other public agencies in this State exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of the law that their actions be taken openly and that their deliberations be conducted openly. The people of this State do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created.
A Pocket Guide http://www.thefirstamendment.org/Brown-Act-Brochure-DEC-03.pdf The Brown Act Intro and Main Document http://ag.ca.gov/publications/2003_Intro_BrownAct.pdf http://caag.state.ca.us/publications/2003_Main_BrownAct.pdf
Council Members, City Employee’s, Key Players and City History Get to know the names of the representatives in the local offices, and those behind the scenes who are major decision makers. From the Mayor to the City Clerk, each one of their roles has a direct effect on your City and your life. You need to know who they are and what they represent to learn who may be pulling their strings. Each city has its own unique history and that history holds the key to what is going on in your particular corner of Sonoma County. |