Los Angeles: Fight on to stop limits on speaking before Board of Supervisors

A group of citizens has been able to forestall a move by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors to restrict the public in addressing the board. A proposal before the board would limit speakers to three minutes for  various items on the agenda and two minutes for items not on the agenda. The board has [...]

Federal judge in Florida blocks bid for gag order in civil rights case

Attorneys for the Southern Poverty Law Center are allowed to discuss a civil rights case involving treatment of plaintiffs in a private Juvenile Detention Center. A federal judge found that a fair trial would not be compromised by statements from plaintiffs or their attorneys. The judge noted that while “Defendants are dismayed by the extrajudicial [...]

A&A: Can ID Be Required to Make Public Comment?

Q: At City Council and Planning Commission meetings they have a sign next to the public-comment podium that says “Please state your name.”I think it might even ask for address.  I believe it is in violation of the Brown Act to require people to say their names. It is important in this community that people [...]

A&A: Public Comment Limits Don’t Allow Time To Make Case

Q: Our Irrigation District Board asks for input from the pubilc on agenda items. However, the Board puts a five-minute limit on each individual. The staff has no limits on discussion time, but members of the audience are limited, even when making a case that disagrees with what staff is recommending. They are not very [...]

A&A: School board changed public comments without notice

Q: Starting in January, the board of education of our unified school district has been systematically trying–and often succeeding–in suppressing or censoring public comments. For more years than I can count, the board has provided a democratic, albeit cumbersome, method of accommodating the public’s right to speak on  items not on the agenda. Speakers were [...]

A&A: Unposted Supporting Documents and Public Comment on those Documents

Unposted Supporting Documents and Public Comment on those Documents Q: The County Board of Supervisors had an agenda item that has been hotly contested for a number of years by this unincorporated community.  Before the meeting, this item was posted.  The “findings of fact” that support the item were not.  These “findings” were not made [...]