Except as otherwise provided in the Charter, by law or in this chapter, the Council shall be governed in questions of order, organization and conduct of business by Robert's Rules of Order in all cases to which applicable.
A. 
Regular meetings shall be held in accordance with § 5-10.
B. 
Special meetings shall be held in accordance with § 5-11.
C. 
Council committee conferences and committees shall be governed by § 5-9.
The Council President shall be chosen and shall act in accordance with § 5-6. The Council President to such other member of the Council as may be presiding may move, second and debate from the chair, subject only to such limitations of debate as are by these rules imposed upon all members and shall not be deprived of any of the rights and privileges of a Councilman by reason of his being the presiding officer.
An agenda for each regular meeting of the Council shall be prepared in accordance with § 5-14.
The rules of quorum shall be in accordance with § 5-15.
[Amended 11-4-1976 by Ord. No. 352-76]
The order of business at each meeting of the Council shall be as follows:
A. 
Roll call.
B. 
Invocation.
C. 
Pledge of allegiance.
D. 
Minutes of previous meeting.
E. 
Presentation of bids.
F. 
Second and final reading of ordinances.
G. 
Hearing of citizens.
H. 
Communications.
I. 
Resolutions and ordinances.
J. 
New and old business; hearing of Councilmen.
K. 
Adjournment.
The Clerk shall, so far as practicable, prepare and distribute to the Council the minutes of each meeting promptly after the meeting. The minutes of any meeting may be approved without reading whenever they have been distributed at least 24 hours prior to the time of approval.
A. 
The vote upon every motion, resolution or ordinance shall be taken by roll call in alphabetical order, except that the Council President shall be polled last, and the yeas and nays shall be entered on the minutes. Upon the call of roll, no member shall discuss or explain his vote; and the silence of any Councilman who is present shall be recorded as an affirmative vote unless he states directly that he abstains.
B. 
The minutes of each meeting shall be signed by the Presiding Officer and by the Clerk.
Nominations by the Mayor and nominations by the Council shall be governed by the provisions of § 5-21.
A. 
Participation of Council President. The President of the Council may participate in accordance with the provisions of § 5-6B.
B. 
Recognition by chair. A member of the Council shall be entitled to the floor only upon recognition by the chair, but such recognition shall only determine the sequence of speaking, and no Councilman shall be denied the privilege of the floor. Once a member has been recognized and taken the floor, he shall not be interrupted for any reason other than a call to order, and in such case the chair shall rule promptly on the point of order and the speaker be allowed to proceed if he is in order.
C. 
Reconsideration. A motion to reconsider may be made by a Councilman on the prevailing side and such motion may be made only at the same meeting, or an adjournment thereof, at which the action was taken.
D. 
Inclusion in minutes. A Councilman shall be entitled to have his written remarks included in the minutes with the consent of the Council. The President, with the consent of the Council, may direct a synopsis of the debate on any question to be included in the minutes.
E. 
Time limits. In all matters, except upon public hearings on second reading of ordinances and except upon consent of the Council President, each person addressing the Council pursuant to this subsection shall be required to limit his remarks to five minutes and shall, at no time, engage in any personally offensive or abusive remarks. The chair shall call any speaker to order who violates any provision of this rule.
A. 
Conduct of Councilmen. Each member of the Council shall cooperate with the chair in preserving order and decorum, and no member shall, by conversation or otherwise, delay or interrupt the proceedings of the Council nor disturb any member while speaking or fail to abide by the orders of the Council or its President, except as specifically permitted by these rules.
B. 
Conduct of public. Any person who shall disturb the peace of the Council, make offensive or abusive remarks or conduct himself in a boisterous manner while addressing the Council shall be forthwith barred by the presiding officer from further audience before the Council, except that if the speaker shall submit to proper order under these rules, permission for him to continue may be granted by a majority vote of the Council.
C. 
Sergeant at arms. The Police Department shall designate a member of the Department to serve as sergeant-at-arms at Council meetings. He shall carry out all orders and instructions given by the presiding officer for the purpose of maintaining order and decorum at such meetings.
The preparation, introduction and enactment of ordinances and resolutions shall be governed by the provisions of § 5-18.
Record of action and passage over veto shall be governed by the provisions of § 5-19 and signed by the City Attorney.
All reports to the Council and all resolutions shall be filed with the City Clerk and entered in the minutes of the Council.
A motion to adjourn shall be in order, provided that there is no roll call or motion in progress, and shall be decided without debate.