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Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Rules for noticing city council study session

[…] be taken or matter discussed at a meeting, whether that meeting is "general," "special," or "emergency," unless the action or discussion is included on a properly posted agenda. Govt. Code section 54954.2. However, an agency is only required to include a "brief general description of each item." Moreno v. City of King, 127 Cal. […]

April 16, 2013
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Future Council Members, Participation, and the Brown Act

[…] does not address whether a city council member, present or future, can advocate for a position in the city council. The Brown Act does provide that "very agenda for regular meetings shall provide an opportunity for members of the public to directly address the legislative body..." and that "he legislative body of a local […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Do Public Comments Have to be Taken into Consideration

[…] presented by the public, during an open hearing not officially called a "public hearing", prior to making a judgment? A county agency heard public comments on an agenda item, was presented with a petition from 29 neighbors requesting a public hearing, didn't read the petition or supporting documentation, and scheduled a review for 7 […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Closed meeting votes and the Brown Act

[…] made within 90 days from the date the action is taken (but the demand must be made within 30 days if there is a violation of the agenda requirements set forth in Section 54954.2). If the legislative body fails to correct the action within the requisite time period, you must file the lawsuit within […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Attorneys present at closed meetings

[…] legal decisions; if the attorney is not present (at least by conference call), the closed session may not be conducted. With respect to your concern about the agenda listing, the Brown Act does require that the litigation to be discussed pursuant to section 54956.9 be listed in some form. It suffices for agencies to […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Getting information from closed sessions

[…] section also authorizes a closed session to discuss a public employee appointment, public employment, or a public employee performance evaluation. In each of these three cases, the agenda must specify the description of the position at issue. However, the same is not true for public employee discipline/dismissal/release. See Government Code section 54954.5(d). That said, […]

June 14, 2009
Asked and Answered

Brown Act

Limitation On Public Comments At City Council Meeting

[…] concluded that five minutes per speaker is a reasonable amount of time, while a California court has held that a limit of two minutes per speaker per agenda item is sufficient. See 75 Ops. Cal. Atty. Gen. 89 (1992); Chaffee v. San Francisco Public Library Commission, 134 Cal. App. 4th 109 (2005). We cannot say whether limiting […]

March 3, 2020
Asked and Answered

Brown Act First Amendment

The Mayor Interrupted Me During Public Comment Period of a City Council Meeting. What Can I Do?

[…] their city."White v. City of Norwalk, 900 F.2d1421, 1425 (9th Cir. 1990).However, this is balanced with the public body's need to "be addressed and deal with its agenda.Public forum or not, the usual first amendment antipathy to content-oriented control of speech cannot be imported into the Council chambers intact."Id.While the governmental body may not […]

March 3, 2021