Addressing Council
Stockton City Council Meetings are open to the public. Members of the public are free to speak at Council meetings in accordance with Council policies.
Written Communications
Interested parties or their authorized representatives may address the Council by written communications on matters then under discussion. Communications are made available to the public.
- Material submitted one business day before a meeting is transmitted to the Council prior to meeting.
- Material submitted on meeting day is copied and placed on dais prior to meeting, time permitting.
Oral Communications
To address the Council, a person must secure the permission or recognition of the presiding officer to do so. Persons may address the Council verbally on any matter concerning the City’s business or any matter over which the Council has control.
Speakers may submit “Request to Speak” cards to the City Clerk who shall number them in order received. The presiding officer will call upon persons to speak in such order, unless a different order is necessary to facilitate the conduct of the meeting.
Persons addressing the Council step up to the podium and speak their name and address. Address all remarks to the Council as a body and not to any member. No person, other than the Council and person speaking, shall enter into any discussion, directly or through a member of the Council, without the permission of the presiding officer. No question shall be asked of a Councilmember except through the presiding officer
- All comments presented to the Council under any agenda item shall be limited to a maximum of three minutes.
- Presiding officer may waive this limitation when deemed necessary to more fully accommodate a citizen’s request to be heard.
- Speakers may not allocate their time to other speakers.
Decorum
When addressing the Council, please do not make personal, impertinent, unduly repetitive, slanderous, or profane remarks to the Council, any Councilmember, City staff, or the general public, Also do not utter loud, threatening, personal, or abusive language or engage in any other conduct that disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise unreasonably impedes the orderly conduct of the Council meeting.
At the discretion of the presiding officer or a majority of the Council, a speaker can be barred from further audience before the Council during that meeting:
- who utters loud, threatening, personal or abusive language,
- who is unduly repetitious or engages in extended discussion of irrelevancies, or
- who engages in any disorderly conduct that disrupts, disturbs or otherwise unreasonably impedes the orderly conduct of any Council meeting.
For further details regarding meeting conduct and proper decorum, please see:
External Links
This City of Stockton web page last reviewed on --- 8/24/2017