Meetings, as used in this article shall mean all regular, special,
or called meetings, formal or informal, of a public body for the purposes
of briefing, discussion of public business, formation of tentative
policy, or the taking of any action. (Ref. 84-1409(2) RS Neb.)
Public Body as used in this article shall mean:
1.
The Governing Body of the Municipality;
2.
All independent boards, commissions, bureaus, committees, councils,
subunits, Certificate of Need appeal panels, or any other bodies,
now or hereafter created by Constitution, statute, or otherwise pursuant
to law; and
3.
Advisory committees of the bodies listed above.
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This Article shall not apply to subcommittees of such bodies
unless such subcommittees are holding hearings, making policy or taking
formal action on behalf of their parent body. (Ref. 84-1409(1) RS
Neb.)
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[Amended by Ord. No. 806, 9-8-1987]
All public meetings as defined by law shall be held in a Municipal
public building which shall be open to attendance by the public. All
meetings shall be held in the public building in which the Governing
Body usually holds such meetings unless the publicized notice hereinafter
required shall designate some other public building or other specified
place. The advance publicized notice of all public convened meetings
shall be simultaneously transmitted to all members of the Governing
Body and to the public by a method designated by the Governing Body
or by the Mayor if the Governing Body has not designated a method.
Such notice shall contain the time and specific place for each meeting
and either an enumeration of the agenda subjects known at the time
of the notice, or a statement that such an agenda kept continually
current shall be readily available for public inspection at the office
of the Municipal Clerk. Except for items of an emergency nature, the
agenda shall not be altered later than (a) 24 hours before the scheduled
commencement of the meeting or (b) 48 hours before the scheduled commencement
of a meeting of the Governing Body scheduled outside the corporate
limits of the Municipality. The Governing Body shall have the right
to modify the agenda to include items of an emergency nature only
at such public meetings. The minutes of the Municipal Clerk shall
include the record of the manner and advance time by which the advance
publicized notice was given, a statement of how the availability of
an agenda of the then known subjects was communicated, the time and
specific place of the meetings, and the names of each member of the
Governing Body present or absent at each convened meeting. The minutes
of the Governing Body shall be a public record open to inspection
by the public upon request at any reasonable time at the office of
the Municipal Clerk. Any official action on any question or motion
duly moved and seconded shall be taken only by roll call vote of the
Governing Body in open session. The record of the Municipal Clerk
shall show how each member voted, or that the member was absent and
did not vote. (Ref. 84-1408, 84-1409, 84-1411, 84-1413 RS Neb.)
Any public body may hold a closed session by the affirmative
vote of a majority of its voting members if a closed session is clearly
necessary for the protection of the public interest or for the prevention
of needless injury to the reputation of an individual and if such
individual has not requested a public meeting. Closed sessions may
be held for, but shall not be limited to, such reasons as:
1.
Strategy sessions with respect to collective bargaining, real estate
purchases, or litigation;
2.
Discussion regarding deployment of security personnel or devices;
3.
Investigative proceedings regarding allegations of criminal misconduct;
or
4.
Evaluation of the job performance of a person when necessary to prevent
needless injury to the reputation of a person and if such person has
not requested a public meeting.
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Nothing in this section shall permit a closed meeting for discussion
of the appointment or election of a new member to any public body.
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The vote to hold a closed session shall be taken in open session.
The vote of each member on the question of holding a closed session,
the reason for the closed session, and the time when the closed session
commenced and concluded shall be recorded in the minutes. The public
body holding such a closed session shall restrict its consideration
to matters during the closed portions to only those purposes set forth
in the minutes as the reason for the closed session. The meeting shall
be reconvened in open session before any formal action may be taken.
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Any member of any public body shall have the right to challenge
the continuation of a closed session if the member determines that
the session has exceeded the reason stated in the original motion
to hold a closed session or if the member contends that the closed
session is neither clearly necessary for (a) the protection of the
public interest or (b) the prevention of needless injury to the reputation
of an individual. Such challenge shall be overruled only by a majority
vote of the members of the public body. Such challenge and its disposition
shall be recorded in the minutes.
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Nothing in this section shall be construed to require that any
meeting be closed to the public. No person or public body shall fail
to invite a portion of its members to a meeting nor shall a public
body designate itself a subcommittee of the whole body for the purpose
of circumventing the provisions of this article, nor shall any closed
session, informal meeting, chance meeting, social gathering, or electronic
communication be used for the purpose of circumventing the provisions
of this article. The provisions of this article shall not apply to
chance meetings, or to attendance at or travel to conventions or workshops
of members of a public body at which there is no meeting of the body
then intentionally convened and there is no vote or other action taken
regarding any matter over which the public body has supervision, control,
jurisdiction, or advisory power. (Ref. 84-1410 RS Neb.)
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When it is necessary to hold an emergency meeting without reasonable advance public notice, the nature of the emergency shall be stated in the minutes and any formal action taken in such meeting shall pertain only to the emergency. Such emergency meetings may be held by means of electronic or telecommunication equipment. The provisions of § 1-708 of this article shall be complied with in conducting emergency meetings. Complete minutes of such emergency meetings specifying the nature of the emergency and any formal action taken at the meeting shall be made available to the public by no later than the end of the next regular business day. (Ref. 84-1411 RS Neb.)
Each public body shall keep minutes of all meetings showing
the time, place, members present and absent, and the substance of
all matters discussed.
The minutes shall be public records and open to public inspection
during normal business hours.
Minutes shall be written and available for inspection within
10 working days, or prior to the next convened meeting, whichever
occurs earlier. (Ref. 84-1412, 84-1413 RS Neb.)
Any action taken on any question or motion duly moved and seconded
shall be by roll call vote of the public body in open session, and
the record shall state how each member voted, or if the member was
absent or not voting. The requirements of a roll call or viva voce
vote shall be satisfied by the Municipality utilizing an electronic
voting device which allows the yeas and nays of each member of the
Governing Body to be readily seen by the public.
The vote to elect leadership within a public body may be taken
by secret ballot, but the total number of votes for each candidate
shall be recorded in the minutes. (Ref. 84-1413 RS Neb.)
The Municipal Clerk, Secretary, or other designee of each public
body shall maintain a list of the news media requesting notification
of meetings and shall make reasonable efforts to provide advance notification
to them of the time and place of each meeting, and the subjects to
be discussed at that meeting. (Ref. 84-1411 RS Neb.)
[Amended by Ord. No. 815, 9-22-1987]
Subject to the provisions of this article, the public shall have the right to attend and the right to speak at meetings of public bodies and all or any part of a meeting of a public body except for closed meetings called pursuant to § 1-704 may be videotaped, televised, photographed, broadcast, or recorded by any person in attendance by means of a tape recorder, camera, video equipment, or any other means of pictorial or sonic reproduction or in writing.
It shall not be a violation of this section for any public body
to make and enforce reasonable rules and regulations regarding the
conduct of persons attending, speaking at, videotaping, televising,
photographing, broadcasting, or recording its meetings. A body may
not be required to allow citizens to speak at each meeting, but it
may not forbid public participation at all meetings. No public body
shall require members of the public to identify themselves as a condition
for admission to the meeting. The body may require any member of the
public desiring to address the body to identify himself or herself.
No public body shall for the purpose of circumventing the provisions
of this article hold a meeting in a place known by the body to be
too small to accommodate the anticipated audience. No public body
shall be deemed in violation of this section if it holds its meeting
in its traditional meeting place which is located in this State. An
agency which contracts with Municipalities outside the State of Nebraska
may hold meetings of any Committee outside the State of Nebraska if
such meetings are held only in such contracting Municipalities. Final
Action on any agenda item shall only be taken by the agency at a meeting
in the State of Nebraska, which meeting shall comply with §s
84-1408 to 84-1414 RS Neb. The public body shall, upon request, make
a reasonable effort to accommodate the public's right to hear the
discussion and testimony presented at the meeting. Public bodies shall
make available at the meeting, for examination and copying by members
of the public, at least one copy of all reproducible written material
to be discussed at an open meeting. (Ref. 84-1412, 18-2438 RS Neb.)
[Amended by Ord. No. 853, 4-18-1989; Ord. No. 903, 5-5-1992; Ord. No.
1202, 12-15-2015]
The meetings of the City Council shall be held in the Council
Chambers of City Hall, or at such other place as the Mayor and City
Council may from time to time designate, at 5:30 p.m., or at such
other time as the Mayor and City Council may from time to time designate,
and shall be held on the first and third Tuesdays of each month. (Ref.
16-401 RS Neb.)
Special meetings may be called by the mayor, or by three members
of the City Council, the object of which shall be submitted to the
Council in writing. The call and object, as well as the disposition
thereof, shall be entered upon the journal by the Municipal Clerk.
On filing the call for a special meeting, the Municipal Clerk shall
notify the Council members of the special meeting, stating the time
and its purpose. Notice of a special meeting need not be given to
a Council member known to be out of the state, or physically unable
to be present. A majority of the members of the City Council shall
constitute a quorum for the transaction of business, but a smaller
number may adjourn from day to day and compel the attendance of the
absent members. Whether a quorum is present or not, all absent members
shall be sent for and compelled to attend.
At the hour appointed for the meeting, the Municipal Clerk shall proceed to call the roll of members and announce whether a quorum is present. If a quorum is present, the Council shall be called to order by the Mayor, if present, or if absent, by the President of the Council. In the absence of both the Mayor and the President of the Council, the City Council-members shall elect a President pro tempore. All ordinances passed at any special meeting shall comply with procedures set forth in Chapter 1, Article 8 herein. (Ref. 16-401 RS Neb.)
A majority of all members elected to the Council shall constitute
a quorum for the transaction of business, but a less number may adjourn,
from time to time, and compel the attendance of the absent members.
An affirmative vote of not less than 1/2 of the elected members shall
be required for the transaction of any business. At the hour appointed
for the meeting, the Municipal Clerk shall proceed to call the roll
of members and announce whether a quorum is present. If a quorum is
present the Council shall be called to order by the Mayor, if present,
or if absent, by the President of the Council. In the absence of both
the Mayor and the President of the Council, the City Council-members
shall elect a President pro tempore. (Ref. 16-401, 16-402 RS Neb.)
The Council or any committee of the members thereof shall have
power to compel the attendance of witnesses for the investigation
of matters that may come before them. The presiding officer of the
Council, or chairman of such committee for the time being, may administer
such requisite oaths. The Council or commit-tee shall have the same
authority to compel the giving of testimony as is conferred on courts
of justice. (Ref. 16-406 RS Neb.)
All meetings of the Council shall be called to order by the
presiding officer at the time set for the meeting, whereupon the Clerk
shall call the roll of Council members, and if there is a quorum present,
the Council shall proceed to business in the following order:
The business and proceedings of the meeting of the Council shall
be conducted in accordance with the following rules:
1.
The presiding officer may refer back to any order of business after
passing it, if there is no objection from any Council member.
2.
The presiding officer shall preserve order at all meetings and when
any Council member is called to order he shall be seated until the
point is decided. All questions of order shall be decided by the presiding
officer, subject to appeal to the Council. In such appeal, a Council
member shall state briefly what in his opinion the ruling should have
been and upon this appeal being seconded, the question of the appeal
shall be put by the presiding officer.
3.
When a question is being put by the presiding officer, no Council
member shall leave the Council Chambers.
4.
Every Council member shall rise from his seat prior to speaking and
address the presiding officer who shall designate the Council member
to speak if more than one shall rise at the same time.
5.
Upon request of any Council member, any motion or resolution shall
be reduced to writing before being acted upon.
6.
Every Council member shall vote on each question put by the presiding
officer unless excused from doing so by a majority of the Council
present.
7.
No motion shall be put or discussed until it has been seconded.
8.
The minutes of the meeting shall show the Council member who offered
or introduced a motion, resolution, or ordinance and the Council member
seconding the same.
9.
The "yeas" and "nays" upon any question shall be taken and entered
on the minutes on request of any Council member.
10.
The Council may reprimand or censure any of its members for improper
behavior as Council members.
11.
Any resolution, ordinance, or motion may be withdrawn by its introducer
or mover with consent of the Council member seconding same, before
same is voted upon.
12.
Motions to reconsider may only be made by a Council member who voted
with the majority.
13.
The presiding officer may reasonably limit the time during which
any person not a member of the Council may address a Council meeting.
14.
The presiding officer may express his opinion on any subject being
discussed or debated by the Council.
15.
The rules may be suspended on the affirmative vote of 2/3 of the
Council.
There is hereby established a consent agenda procedure for the
transaction of certain routine business at Council meetings. The intent
of this procedure is to expedite the conducting of routine business
at Council meetings to allow more time to be devoted to substantive
issues by condensing the time necessary to process routine items,
but yet allowing an opportunity for full discussion in consideration
of said items if appropriate. The procedure to be followed is as follows:
1.
Items considered by the City Clerk to be of routine and non-controversial
nature may be placed by him or her on the agenda for regular Council
meetings and special Council meetings under the heading of "consent
agenda." Such items shall be clearly worded to indicate action to
be taken by the Council.
2.
At the Council meeting, the Mayor will review those items placed
on the consent agenda and ask if any member of the Council or public
in attendance wishes to have an item removed from the consent agenda
and placed on the regular agenda. All such requests are not debatable
and will be complied with without discussion.
3.
After all items have been removed from the consent agenda, as requested
by a member of the Council or public in attendance, the Council will
then consider adoption of the actions recommended and specified in
the consent agenda by a single motion and vote of the Council.
4.
All items listed on the consent agenda shall be recorded in the minutes
individually and in their proper form and the vote recorded adopting
the recommended and specified action on the consent agenda shall be
shown as the vote on each such item in the minutes.
The newly elected Council shall convene at the regular place
of meeting in the City on the 1st regular meeting in December of each
year in which a Municipal election is held immediately after the prior
Council adjourns and proceed to organize themselves for the ensuing
year. The Mayor elected for the new municipal year shall call the
meeting to order. The Council shall then proceed to examine the credentials
of its members and other elective officers of the City to see that
each has been duly and properly elected, and to see that such oaths
and bonds have been given as are required. After ascertaining that
all members are duly qualified, the Council shall then elect one of
its own body who shall be styled as "President of the Council." The
Mayor shall then nominate his candidates for appointive offices. He
shall then proceed with the regular order of business. It is hereby
made the duty of each and every member of the Council, or his successor
in office, and to each officer elected to any office, to qualify prior
to the 1st regular meeting in December following his election. All
appointive officers shall qualify within two weeks following their
appointments. Qualification for each officer who is not required to
give bond shall consist in his subscribing and taking an oath to support
the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State
of Nebraska, the laws of the Municipality and to perform faithfully
and impartially the duties of his office, said oath to be filed in
the office of the Municipal Clerk. Each officer who is required to
give a bond shall file the required bond in the office of the Municipal
Clerk with sufficient sureties, conditioned on the faithful discharge
of the duties of his office, with the oath endorsed thereon.
The Mayor and City Council may, by order, adjourn at any time
not to exceed two regular meetings.
