The City Council shall hold regular meetings on the first and third Monday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council chambers or any other location or time they so designate. The City Council chambers is located in City Hall, 201 First Avenue East, Kalispell, Montana.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-6; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)
On those days when a regularly scheduled meeting of the City Council falls upon a legal holiday, the City Council shall hold its regular meeting on the Tuesday next succeeding the legal holiday at the hour of 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, City Hall, Kalispell, Montana.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-7)
A. 
Call by Mayor: The Mayor, or in his or her absence, the president of the Council, may call a special meeting of the Council whenever public business may require it.
B. 
Call by Council Members: A special meeting may be called at the request of three members of the Council.
C. 
Notice Served: Whenever a special meeting shall be called, a notice in writing signed by the Mayor or the Council President shall be served upon each member of the Council either in person or by notice left at their place of residence, stating the date and hour of the meeting.
D. 
Business Limited: No business shall be transacted at a special meeting unless the same is stated in the notice.
E. 
Notice Prior to Meeting: Notice of a special meeting must be served upon the Council at least 24 hours prior to the meeting and the public media shall be notified as soon as practical prior to such meeting.
F. 
Waiver of Notice: A special meeting may also be held without the service of notice, only if the Mayor and a majority of all the Council, prior to the meeting, sign a waiver of said notice, but in this event, the public media shall be notified as soon as practical prior to such meeting.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-8; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)
All meetings of the Council and committees shall be subject to the State Open Meeting Law and shall be regulated accordingly, to ensure public participation.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-9)
A. 
Set by City Manager: The City Manager shall set the agenda for the City Council meeting.
B. 
Submission; Time Limit: All reports, communications, ordinances, resolutions, contract documents, or other matters for possible submission to the Council shall be submitted by 5:00 p.m. Wednesday preceding the Council meeting to the City Manager.
(Ord. 1393, 9-17-2001)
A. 
Presiding Member: The Mayor or president or such other member of the Council as may be presiding may debate from the chair, subject only to such limitations of debate as are imposed upon all members.
B. 
Address Chair: Every person desiring to speak shall address the chair and, upon recognition by the presiding officer, shall be confined to the question under debate.
C. 
Speaking: Once a person is recognized, there shall be no interruption when speaking unless it be to call the speaker to order or as otherwise provided. If a person, while speaking, is called to order, the person shall cease speaking until the question of order be determined, and, if in order, shall be permitted to proceed.
D. 
Inappropriate Language: All personalities and indecorous language shall be avoided during any debate.
E. 
Closing: The member moving the adoption of any ordinance or resolution or other matter shall have the privilege of closing the debate.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-12)
All parliamentary questions which may arise before the Council, not otherwise provided for, shall be determined by Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised, 10th Edition, 2000.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-13; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)
A. 
Affirmative Vote Required: In order for a motion to be adopted by the Council, the motion must receive an affirmative vote from the majority of the Council present at the meeting, unless otherwise provided by State law or ordinance.
B. 
Roll Call; Recording: Votes on resolutions and ordinances shall be taken by roll call and each member's vote shall be recorded in the minutes.
C. 
Viva Voce Votes: Votes on motions other than resolutions and ordinances shall be taken viva voce. If any member of the Council requests, or if the Mayor determines it necessary, a show of hands may be used to verify a vote.
D. 
Member Vote Required; Exceptions: When a question is stated upon any matter before the Council, every member of the Council present shall vote unless:
1. 
Excused by a majority vote of the Council present;
2. 
Directly interested in the question; or
3. 
Prohibited by State law; in which case the Council member shall not vote.
E. 
Rotate Call: The clerk, in calling the roll call vote, shall rotate the call each meeting to members of the Council present, except that the chair of the meeting shall vote last.
F. 
Economic Benefit of Member Prohibited: No Council member shall perform any official act directly and substantially affecting to its economic benefit a business or other undertaking in which he or she either has a substantial financial interest or is engaged as counsel, consultant, representative or agent.
G. 
Voluntary Disclosure: A Council member may perform an official act notwithstanding the provisions of subsection F of this section when his or her participation is necessary to obtain a quorum or otherwise enable the body to act, if he or she complies with the voluntary disclosure procedures under Montana Code Annotated Section 2-2-131.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-14)
A. 
Specified: The presiding officer shall be the Mayor; in the absence of the Mayor, the President of the Council; or in the absence of both, such other member as the Council may designate.
B. 
Preserve Order: The presiding officer shall preserve strict order and decorum at all meetings of the Council.
C. 
Determine Questions of Order: Every question coming before the Council shall be stated, the decision of the Council shall be announced, and the presiding officer shall decide all questions of order, subject, however, to an appeal to the Council, in which event a majority vote of the members present shall govern and conclusively determine such questions of order.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-15)
The presiding officer shall take the chair precisely at the hour appointed for the meeting and shall immediately call the Council to order.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-16)
Before proceeding with the business of the Council, the City Clerk shall call the roll of the members and the names of those present shall be entered on the minutes.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-17; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)
A majority of all elected members of the Council shall constitute the quorum at any regular or special meeting of the Council.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-18)
A Council member may request, through the presiding officer, the privilege of having an abstract of his or her statement on any subject under consideration by the Council entered in the minutes. The City Clerk may be directed by the presiding officer, with the consent of the Council, to enter in the minutes a synopsis or abstract of the discussion upon any question regularly before the Council.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-19; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)
A. 
Each person not a Council member shall address the Council, at the time designated in the agenda or as directed by the Council, by stepping to the podium or microphone, giving that person's name and address in an audible tone of voice for the record, and unless further time is granted by the Council, shall limit the address to the Council to three minutes.
B. 
All remarks shall be addressed to the Council as a body and not to any member of the Council or staff.
C. 
No person, other than the Council and the person having the floor, shall be permitted to enter into any discussion either directly or through a member of the Council, without the permission of the presiding officer.
D. 
No question shall be asked of individuals except through the presiding officer.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-20)
A. 
Council Members: While the Council is in session, the members must preserve order and decorum, and the members shall neither, by conversation or otherwise, delay or interrupt the proceedings or the peace of the Council, nor disturb any member while speaking or refuse to obey the orders of the Council or its presiding officer.
B. 
Other Persons: Any person making personal, impertinent or slanderous remarks or who becomes boisterous while addressing the Council shall be forthwith, by the presiding officer, barred from further audience before the Council, unless permission to continue be granted by majority vote of the Council.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-21)
The Chief of Police or such member or members of the Police Department as the Chief may designate, shall be the sergeant-at-arms of the Council meetings.
A. 
Sergeant-At-Arms: The sergeant-at-arms shall carry out all orders and instructions given by the presiding officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at the Council meetings.
B. 
Arrest: Upon instructions of the presiding officer, it shall be the duty of the sergeant-at-arms, or such other members of the Police Department present, to place any person who violates the order of decorum of the meeting under arrest, and subject to the discretion of the presiding officer to cite such violator into Kalispell Municipal Court for the violation of MCA 45-8-101(g), Disturbing or Disrupting Any Lawful Assembly or Public Meeting.
(Ord. 1166 § 2-22; amd. Ord. 1680, 10-18-2010)