2.11.020 General governance.
A. Quorum. A majority of the council members present constitutes a quorum. However, a smaller number may meet and compel absent members to attend as provided in subsection B of this section.
B. Compelling Attendance.
1. When a quorum is not present at the time set for a meeting or when quorum has been present and a meeting has commenced and a quorum is no longer present, any council member may move for a call of the house.
2. The motion for a call of the house shall take precedence over all other business. The motion need not be seconded, but it is subject to discussion. Two council members must concur for the motion for a call of the house to pass.
3. If the motion is passed, then the presiding officer shall compel attendance by using reasonable means, including providing administrative staff assistance, to effect the attendance of unexcused and absent council members. The council members voting for the motion are authorized to recess the meeting to a time certain while attendance is being compelled.
4. Council members being compelled to attend may use electronic means to attend the meeting.
C. Council President. At the first meeting of each calendar year, a council member shall nominate, from the floor, a city councilor for the position of council president. Nominations shall continue until no more are nominated. A city councilor who receives the majority vote of council members present and voting shall become the council president for that year.
D. Presiding Officer.
1. The mayor shall preside over all meetings of the council. In the absence of the mayor, the council president shall preside.
2. In the absence of both, the city recorder shall call the council to order and call the roll of the city councilors. After the city recorder calls the roll, the city councilors present shall then elect, by majority vote, a temporary presiding officer for that meeting. If the mayor or council President should later arrive to the meeting, the temporary presiding officer shall relinquish control of the meeting upon conclusion of the item presently being discussed. A temporary presiding officer may call any other city councilor to temporarily preside over a meeting in order to take part in debate, to make a motion, or to cover a temporary absence, except that such substitution shall not continue beyond adjournment.
E. Presiding Officer’s Duties. The presiding officer shall:
1. Call all council meetings to order.
2. Determine all points of order, subject to the right of any city councilor to appeal to the city council.
3. Recognize any city councilor desiring to be heard.
4. State all questions submitted for a vote and announce the result.
5. Preserve order and decorum during meetings, and confine debates to the question under discussion. The presiding officer may cause persons in attendance at the meeting who become actually disorderly or disruptive to be removed from the meeting. The presiding officer may ask police to remove the person from the council meeting.
6. Call short recesses during a meeting if deemed necessary by the presiding officer.
F. Agenda. The city manager shall determine the agenda items or cause any item requested by a council member to be placed on the agenda in a timely manner. The city recorder shall prepare the agenda and deliver the agenda to the city council at least 24 hours before the council meeting to which the agenda pertains, unless an emergency meeting is duly called.
G. Order of Business. The order of business for all regular meetings shall generally be as follows:
1. Call to Order. The call to order shall note the date, time, and location of the meeting so that it may accurately be reflected in the minutes.
2. Roll Call. The city recorder shall conduct the roll call to determine who among the mayor and city councilors is present and who is absent.
3. Proclamations.
4. Presentations to city council.
5. Visitor Comment Period. A visitor may provide comments on any City-related matter that is not on the agenda for a land use or public hearing. Unless the council meeting is being held virtually, a visitor must complete a visitor comment card with the visitor’s name, address, and topic on which the visitor wishes to speak and must submit it to the city recorder. A visitor’s comments shall not exceed five minutes, and the total time is generally limited to 30 minutes, unless city council extends the total time. The presiding officer may alter the amount of time a visitor is allotted depending on the number of visitors who wish to speak. Council members may, after obtaining the floor, engage with a visitor after a visitor provides comments.
6. Council Items. Any council member may bring any matter before city council the council member feels should be deliberated upon by the city council. The city council may decline to take formal action on such matters or may defer such matters to a subsequent meeting.
7. Staff items or reports.
8. Consent Agenda.
a. All items on the consent agenda shall be approved by a single motion, unless a council member pulls an item for separate consideration.
b. A council member should provide reasonable advance notice to the city recorder and the city manager before a meeting if council member knows that the council member wants to pull an item from the consent agenda for separate consideration. However, a council member may also pull an item from the consent agenda during the “council items” portion of that meeting.
c. As used in this subsection, “separate consideration” means any proposal to adopt a different course of action than is recommended in the staff report, a determination that debate or comment on a proposed course of action is deemed desirable, question or questions that need to be asked to staff on an item, or any item where a council member must declare a conflict of interest.
9. Public Hearings. See BC 2.11.030.
10. Action items.
11. Ordinances, including readings and/or adoption.
12. Work Sessions. A work session is intended to allow staff to present information to city council and for preliminary discussions to occur between council members, and the city council is not permitted to take final action on any matter at a work session.
13. Executive Sessions, As Needed. See BC 2.11.025(D).
14. Council new business.
15. Adjournment.
H. Varying the Order of Business. When it appears to be in the best interests of the public, the city manager or the presiding officer may vary the order of business for any single meeting. If a city councilor objects to the change, the city councilor may move to reinstate the order of business or move to have an alternative order of business. If the motion is seconded by another city councilor and passed by a majority vote of council members present and voting, the order of business passed shall be the order of business for that meeting. [BC 2.11.020, added by Ordinance No. 4764, 6/11/19; amended by Ordinance No. 4794, 12/1/20]