HomeMy WebLinkAboutcocc_resolution_no_2022-28_20221220RESOLUTION NO. 2022-28
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CAPE CANAVERAL,
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA; SUPPLEMENTING THE CITY COUNCIL RULES
OF PROCEDURE TO PROVIDE METHODS TO ASSIST THE CITY COUNCIL
WITH CONDUCTING SHORTER AND MORE EFFICIENT/EFFECTIVE
MEETINGS; PROVIDING FOR THE REPEAL OF PRIOR INCONSISTENT
RESOLUTIONS, SEVERABILITY AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, Section 2.11(b), City Charter, states "the city council shall determine its own
rules and order of business and shall provide for keeping a journal of its proceedings. This journal
shall be a public record"; and
WHEREAS, Section 2-28(1), City Code, states: "I will abide by all laws of the state applicable
to my conduct as a councilmember, including, but not limited to, the Government in the Sunshine
Law, the Florida Code of Ethics for Public Officers, and city rules of procedure and codes of
conduct.'; and
WHEREAS, at its Workshop Meeting on September 6, 2022, City Council reached
consensus that time management is key to holding shorter, more efficient/effective meetings; to
be effective, Mayor/Chairperson, Council Members, City Manager and City Attorney will need to
take a more active role in acknowledging and holding each other accountable for time
management practices; in many cases, applying the already established Robert's Rules of Order
and the Code of Conduct (Sec. 2-28) will greatly reduce the length of meetings; and for Staff to
prepare a Draft Rules of Procedure for Council to review, submit revisions, then bring back to a
Council Meeting for action; and
WHEREAS, in response, Staff prepared the attached Exhibit "A" in order to synthesize the
City Council feedback from the September 6, 2022 Workshop Meeting.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT DULY RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
CAPE CANAVERAL, BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Recitals. The foregoing recitals are deemed true and correct and are hereby
incorporated herein by this reference as a material part of this Resolution.
Section 2. Procedures and Methods. The City Council hereby supports and adopts the
supplemental rules of procedure attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit "A," to
provide methods to assist the City Council with conducting shorter and more efficient/effective
meetings.
Section 3. Adherence to Section 2-28, City Code. City Council reaffirms its commitment to
abide by Section 2-28(1), City Code, Code of Conduct, which states:
City of Cape Canaveral
Resolution No. 2022-28
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"I will abide by all laws of the state applicable to my conduct as a councilmember,
including, but not limited to, the Government in the Sunshine Law, the Florida Code of
Ethics for Public Officers, and city rules of procedure and codes of conduct."
Section 4. Repeal of Prior Inconsistent Resolutions. All prior resolutions or parts of
resolutions in conflict herewith are hereby repealed to the extent of the conflict.
Section 5. Severability. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase, word or portion
of this Resolution is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent
jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and such
holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion hereto.
Section 6. Effective Date. This Resolution shall become effective immediately upon adoption
by the City Council of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Cape Canaveral, Florida,
assembled this 20th day of December 2022.
Wes Morrison, Mayor
Name FOR AGAINST
Kim Davis x
Mickie Kellum Second
Wes Morrison x
Angela Raymond Mc)t i cyn
Don Willis
Approved as to legal form and sufficiency
For the City of Cape Canaveral only by:
Anthony A. Garganese, City Attorney
City of Cape Canaveral
Resolution No. 2022-28
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Resolution No. 2022-28
Exhibit A
City of Cape Canaveral
Rules of Procedure for Managing Shorter,
Efficient/Effective Meetings
1. Know the Type and Purpose of the Meeting and be Prepared
Council Meetings are Regular, Special and Workshop Meetings.
Regular and Special Meetings are where business items are presented and acted upon
efficiently, in a businesslike and orderly manner, following parliamentary guidelines with
appropriate people in attendance. Regular Meetings require one -week prior Notice and Special
Meetings require 24-hour Notice (excluding Emergency Meetings).
Workshop Meetings are informal discussions about City business. However, parliamentary
guidelines still apply. If, during discussion of any given topic at a Regular Meeting, it is determined
that the topic could benefit from a workshop and/or reduce the length of time it would take in a
Regular Meeting, the Council may make a Motion (or reach consensus) to stop discussion and
schedule a Workshop Meeting at a future date. For convenience, City Council may opt to hold
subsequent Workshop Meetings on the same day as a Regular Meeting. Workshop Meetings
require 24-hour advance notice.
All meetings are open to the public. Minutes are taken at each of these meetings. Staff Members
such as the City Manager and City Attorney should attend Regular and Special Meetings. See
Division 3. Meetings in the City Code.
Application: Knowledge and preparation of the meeting topics is key in limiting
discussion time. Although not a substitute for independent Council Member research
and study, the City Manager helps to facilitate by meeting one-on-one with Council
Members and is available to answer questions as needed.
2. Deviation from Set Agenda
Time management is key to shorter effective/efficient meetings; holding each other accountable
to reduce lengthy discussion is a responsibility of each Council Member. Unless the Council
formally approves a critical, unscheduled add -on item, there should be no deviation from the
Agenda. Times listed on the Agenda are a guideline, and therefore may change depending on
the topic(s). The Consent Agenda is intended to handle a number of routine items as an efficiency.
Pulling topics from Consent Agenda for minimal discussion can add time to the meeting.
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Exhibit A
Application: Purposefully use the "Approval of the Agenda" section at the beginning
of each Regular City Council Meeting to approve or amend the agenda. Additionally,
avoid pulling items from the Consent Agenda without productive intent.
3. Public Participation/Comment and Managing Large Attendance
During the Public Participation portion of the City Council meeting agenda, Council should not
feel compelled to respond to public comments and/or answer questions directed to them from
the lectern. This is a "receive only" part of the Council Meeting.
During Public Comment for all other applicable agenda items, Council may respond to public
comments and/or answer questions directed to them from the lectern.
Audience members must use the lectern microphone to speak, to ensure their voice is
heard/recorded accurately in the minutes. The timer will be used to maintain efficiency.
Application: The Mayor/Chair has the responsibility to acknowledge, facilitate, and
manage public participation/comments. The following options are available for
managing large attendance/number of comments:
• Determine if multiple people share the same opinion and request that they
delegate one representative to speak for their group at the lectern.
• Request that speakers who share the same opinion as previous speakers not
repeat comments, bringing new thoughts and ideas forward.
The Mayor/Chair may request Council consensus to adjust the timer to accommodate
for larger attendance/number of comments/topics.
The Mayor/Chair has the ability to direct the muting of the lectern microphone if
speaker continues to speak after allotted time expires.
If a Council Member is aware that a larger than normal attendance is expected, please
give Staff prior notice so they may:
a) Plan for a larger number of speaker cards/pens/Agendas, etc.
b) Adjust Staff seating/parking to accommodate for a larger number of
attendees.
c) Coordinate lobby AV equipment/technology for an overflow crowd.
4. Decisiveness
After discussion, Council should provide clear, well -stated direction to move the item forward
efficiently.
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Resolution No. 2022-28
Exhibit A
Application: Indecisiveness creates unclear direction, causes confusion, and can
result in a negative financial impact (unnecessarily missed deadlines, redirection of
Staff time and efforts).
5. Motions
Motions should always be clear and concise. Look to the City Manager's recommendation section
on the Agenda Cover for suggested wording.
Application: Making a clear/concise motion ensures recording of consistent,
accurate Minutes, which will help to make the Council's intentions clear for all in
attendance as well as future readers of the City's official permanent record.
6. More Information Needed
If Council finds that it cannot move further on an agenda item because of questions that cannot
be answered at the time of the meeting and/or needs additional information before being able
to vote on an Agenda Item, Council has two options:
a) Move to request the item return to Council at a future meeting with more
information/answers on the topic. Once the Motion carries, no further discussion on the
topic should take place.
b) Move to schedule a Workshop Meeting to discuss the topic. Once the Motion carries, no
further discussion on the topic should take place.
Application: If it becomes evident that an item cannot move any further during the
current meeting, approve a Motion, using the appropriate course of action, and move
on to the next item. At this point, there is no point in continuing any additional
discussion.
7. Late -revealed Critical Information
Council Members having knowledge of critical information (i.e. new, unexpected, unanticipated,
and/or very important information) should make every effort to ensure this information is
communicated to the City Manager well before the Council Meeting. Timely disclosure of critical
information ensures the City Manager and/or Staff can evaluate the information, research the
topic and advise others as needed prior to the meeting. Having prior knowledge also allows City
Manager/Staff to invite subject experts to the meeting and be better prepared to discuss these
topics with Council. When critical information is late -revealed during a Council meeting that
should have been brought up beforehand with Staff, it can:
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Resolution No. 2022-28
Exhibit A
a) give the impression of not being transparent
b) leave the City Manager unprepared to have an individual present to respond to late -
revealed information
c) delay responses to a future meeting
d) leave the City Manager/Staff and Council at a disadvantage
e) lead to Council and Staff feeling undermined
f) erode Public Trust
Application: Support full transparency and foster Public Trust by providing critical
information prior to the meeting. This will ensure that:
• the City Manager is prepared with appropriate answers, information, and
appropriate individuals are present to respond at Council meetings
• City Manager/Staff and Council are not undermined or placed at a
disadvantage during a Public meeting
8. The Floor
Proper decorum requires that Council Members respect the speaker who has the floor and allow
them to speak their thoughts completely. Interruptions can cause the speaker to lose train of
thought and repeat themselves in order to reinforce that their statement is heard.
Application: A speaker who has been recognized by the Mayor/Chair should not be
interrupted unless it is to invoke a point of order.
9. Discussions/Ending Discussions
Council Members should be mindful and respectful of all in attendance and should avoid time-
consuming and unproductive dialogue. Re -stating the same information, repeatedly, impairs the
audience's level of engagement, may cause frustrated audience members to leave early and, at
worst, can provoke disorderly behavior. Council Members are free to express their individual
opinions and be persuasive, but without attempting to wear -down previously stated positions,
as this behavior can be considered bullying, threatens decorum and extends the length of
meetings.
Robert's Rules of Order can be invoked to "Call the Question" during Council discussion/debate.
When "Call the Question" is used to end discussion, it must be properly executed.
Application: (from Roberts Rules of Order) "Any member who wishes to force an
end to debate must first obtain the floor by being duly recognized to speak by the
chair, and must then move the Previous Question. Such a motion must be seconded,
and then adopted by a two-thirds vote (4 out of 5), or by unanimous consent. No
further discussion on the topic is to take place."
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Resolution No. 2022-28
Exhibit A
10. "Information Only" Topics
Items located in the "Information Only" section of the Agenda are not for discussion.
Application: Unless the agenda has been so amended under the "Approval of the
Agenda" section, Council Members should refrain from dialogue on "Information
Only" items.
11. Acceptance
Individual current Council Members should accept actions taken by the Body. Council Members
may disagree with those actions, past or present, but once a vote carries, it should be respected.
Application: Although new ideas can emerge in time, formal decisions are final and
further debate is unproductive. The concept equally applies to volunteer Advisory
Boards. Council has the option to accept, modify or reject Board recommendations;
however, Council should trust that the Boards have done their due diligence and
accept their efforts.
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