If there’s one great thing about the United States, it’s free speech. In this country we can say just about whatever we want, to whomever we want — especially when it comes to government.
It’s our First Amendment right.
This most sacred of liberties is nearly universally respected, and in small communities almost always translates to governments giving people the chance to share their compliments, concerns or outrages during regular public meetings. The same is true in Langley, but the process of sharing one’s two cents with the city council isn’t so predictable these days.
Since taking the helm at City Hall this month, Tim Callison, Langley’s enthusiastic new mayor, has done a bit of reinventing of the public comment wheel. He rearranged its traditional placement as one of the first items on council meeting agendas. In the two meetings he’s shepherded so far he’s moved the public comment period twice, once to the end of the agenda. And it may change again, he said. Trying new things is great, but we believe our freshman leader at city hall should rethink tampering with this tried and true model.
For starters, we can see few benefits of moving public comment to the end of an agenda and even fewer to a roving time. If the former became the norm, then it would by default force people to stay till the end of the meeting to say their piece. They could of course throw risk to the wind and show up late, but meeting end times are flexible as they are subject to the topics of the day. In other words, there’s no guarantee one would show up before the gavel falls.
If the goal is to hear from the public, then such a move seems counter-productive. It’s the job of government officials and lowly reporters to sit through the entire meeting, not the public’s. This is likely why Langley, the county, Oak Harbor, Coupeville and, to our knowledge, every other major junior taxing district on Whidbey, places public comment periods at the head of their agendas, not at the end. Many actually give two opportunities to speak.
We think a roving comment period would be even worse, providing the public with even less predictability and reliability. Like any seasoned business professional knows, these are essential requirements for success. Customers have to know the when and where — it’s business 101.
If you’re serious about taking public comment, it’s no different.
Callison is proving himself to be a personable and responsive mayor — the man is easy to get along with and promptly returns our calls — but the old model and format to weigh in on city affairs was in place for good reason. It’s our hope that it continues.
