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not limit debate
during meeting
The county commission’s policies of how meetings will be conducted are as clear as mud.
Apparently, no official policy or by-laws exist.
It is an important issue now because three county commissioners believe a motion made by Commissioner Amon McKenzie at a previous commissioners meeting is intended to limit their ability to debate items that aren’t on the agenda.
We find McKenzie’s motion and its support by three other board members very troubling.
It seems downright un-American that a majority of a board could instigate rules that would stifle debate among its members. Boards exist to bring some order to the democratic process. Because it would be chaotic if all the county’s 55,000 or so residents tried to make the rules and enact ordinances, the people elect representatives (in this case, seven county commissioners), to act on their behalf. If it takes a longer meeting to make sure the opinions of all county commissioners are heard, then so be it.
If the county is looking for guidance, “Robert’s Rules of Order” is a simple place to start. “Robert’s” is commonly used by many boards across the country for parliamentary procedure guidelines.
Just because other board members don’t like the message is no reason to limit debate. That appears to be the motivation for what’s afoot now, and that’s not right.
We like what a professor at the Institute of a Government said this week: that the majority rules, but the minority must be heard.