A.
Council meetings, termed a "legislative day," shall be scheduled to convene at 7:00 p.m. on the first and third Tuesday of each month, and shall be held in the County Administration Building in accordance with § A387-10B.
C.
Legislative meetings scheduled by the Council to convene at a location
other than in the County Administration Building may be authorized
by the affirmative vote of three Council members at least one week
in advance.
Public notice of meetings, which must include information as
to the matters pending before the Council, the purpose of a meeting
and its agenda, is to be provided as required by law, the Charter,
ordinance or these rules.
A.
Council members must be present during the roll call vote at a legislative
meeting in order to cast their vote.
B.
Any Council member who is unable to attend any Council meeting must
notify the Council President and/or Council Manager.
C.
A Council member shall be permitted to participate, by phone, up
to four times per year in nonlegislative meetings that such Council
member is unable to attend in person, provided:
D.
A Council member may exceed the four-times-per-year limit in circumstances
where he/she has a situation or medical condition that prevents the
Council member from attending a nonlegislative meeting in person.
E.
Council staff will make arrangements for the Council member to participate
in a nonlegislative meeting via phone; however, if there is a technical
difficulty beyond their control, the Council member will be unable
to participate via phone.
At its public hearing, copies of a bill will be provided to
the public at no cost to the recipients. Thereafter, members of the
public may obtain paper copies of bills for the cost of reproduction.
A.
The written meeting minutes shall be the official record of the meetings
of the Council. In accordance with Section 10-509, State Government
Article, Annotated Code of Maryland, the minutes of Council meetings
shall reflect:
B.
If the Council meets in closed session, the minutes for its next
open session shall include:
(1)
A statement of the time, place, and purpose of the closed session;
(2)
A record of the vote of each member as to closing the session;
(3)
A citation of the authority under the subtitle for closing the
session; and
(4)
A listing of the topics of discussion, persons present, and
each action taken during the session.
C.
Other matters relative to meeting minutes, roll call votes, and the
Council Journal may be required by law, by the Charter, and/or by
these policies and procedures.
D.
Minutes of the legislative session and work session shall be provided
to Council members in advance for review. At the session, Council
members may amend the minutes as needed. The audio and/or video recordings
of the sessions may be reviewed by Council members, staff, or the
public to bring any differences in the written minutes to the Council.
Council shall approve the meeting minutes and any amendments to the
minutes by motion.
Pursuant to the Charter, copies of the minutes of Council meetings
are to be posted within 24 hours after approval. Such copies must
be posted on a bulletin board maintained in a public place and appear
on the County website or otherwise be published using electronic media.
A.
Pursuant to the Charter, a Council Journal is to be maintained in
which the proceedings and minutes of the Council are recorded. The
Council Journal is to be open for public inspection during normal
business hours. Audio recordings of meetings that are open to the
public pursuant to state law are to be made available on the County's
website.
B.
Every question or motion presented to the Council for decision, and
the title of every bill, ordinance, resolution, or other legislative
matter considered, must be recorded in the Journal.
C.
The name of every Council member introducing a bill, ordinance, or
resolution, or moving to amend a bill, ordinance, resolution, and/or
other legislative matter is to be entered in the Council Journal.
D.
Roll call votes and the ayes and nays are to be recorded in the Council
Journal.
E.
When a bill, ordinance, resolution, or other legislative matter is
recorded in the Council Journal for the first time, its title must
be entered in full. Thereafter, subsequent entries or any legislative
matter may be made by number and abbreviated title.
F.
Other matters may be entered into the Council Journal as may be required
by law, the Charter, these Rules or by the Council President.
A.
Adequate seating for the public will be provided at every public
meeting.
B.
At public hearings and at legislative meetings, the presiding officer
will provide time for members of the public to address the Council
on pertinent matters.
C.
Persons who wish to address the Council will be allowed to do so
at a designated time, and will be recognized by the presiding officer.
Upon recognition, the person must begin by first stating his or her
name, town of residence, and the persons or organization represented,
if any. Council reserves the right to allocate the amount of time
individuals are permitted to speak during public comment and/or public
hearings.
D.
The presiding officer shall ensure that the meeting of the public
body is conducted in an orderly, civil and courteous manner to permit
all participants the ability to state his or her position, and make
his or her comments in a professional atmosphere.
E.
Meeting participants are expected to behave in a professional manner
and not take any action(s) that would visually or verbally disrupt,
interrupt, or otherwise create an antagonistic atmosphere to conduct
the business of the County.
F.
The presiding officer may order any meeting participant who persists
in conduct that prohibits the public body from conducting the business
of the County removed from the meeting, and the presiding officer
may recess the session and/or request police assistance to restore
order.
