No.1426 RESOLUTION AI RESOLUTION OF THE: BOROUGH OF HANOVER ADOPTING RULES REGARDING PUBLICMEETINGS WHEREAS, the primary purpose of Borough Council meetings and Committee meetings is to afford elected officials the opportunity to conduct Borough business set WHEREAS, Borough Council is committed to the democratic process, individual rights of expression, robust debate, and respect of those with opposing forth ini the Agenda; and viewpoints; and WHEREAS, Borough Council recognizes that our society is burdened by a trend ofi increasing incivility and a growing intolerance towards those with different views; WHEREAS, specific examples of these general societal trends havel been evident at recent Borough Council meetings which has the effect of stifling participation, threatening the quality of decision-making on the part of Council, and shifting the and focus of thei meetings away from its primary purpose; and WHEREAS, Borough Council desires tol be aj positive model of local government, to seek excellence inj public administration, and tol hold ourselves to the WHEREAS, the purpose of the following Rules of Decorum is to assure an orderly framework within which the business of thel Borough can be conducted by setting basic ground rules for public participation, encouraging Council and thej public to act toward each other with charity and respect, and providing a framework for highest personal standards; and enforcing the rules we set for ourselves; and WHEREAS, the authority for establishment of these rules is derived from the Borough Code, 8F Pa. C.S.A. Section 101, et seq. and the Sunshine Act, 65 P.S. 271 ets seq. and all amendments thereto; and NOW, THEREFORE, BEI IT HEREBY RESOLVED by the Borough of Hanover as follows: RUIESOECONDUCT Civility and Decorum: Borough officials and members of the publica are expected to conduct themselves with civility and to accord each other aj measure of dignity and: respect. Shouting, personali insults, attacks, or any conduct that disrupts At the discretion of Counci/Committee, disruptive individuals shall be subject to removal from the meeting unless they agree to maintain civility and Editorial Note: This should be ai rarity, ifever. Any decision to remove someone should be made by the Council as a whole to ensure that a decision is not made in haste nor isc content based. A decision should be based only on a repeated breach of the rules. Prior to the flow of business is considered tol be out of order. decorum. removal, a person should be reminded oft the rules. Ifthe disruption continues, Council can recess a meeting for a cooling off period. If after the recess, the disruption continues, thena person can be removed. All persons attending: public meetings should strive to: Treat everyone courteously Listen to others respectfully every topic needlessly Exercise self-control, including the perceived need to address Exercise brevity, considering the rights of all others tol be heard within thei reasonable time constraints of the meeting Give open-minded consideration to all viewpoints Focus oni issues and avoid personalizing debate Embracing respectful disagreements and dissent as democratic rights inherenti in public service and public participation. Bea aware of non-verbal expressions General Procedure: Iti is the policy ofl Borough not tol become involved in entanglements over parliamentary procedure" in its public meetings. Iti is thei intent oft thel Borough to act consistently with thel Pennsylvania Borough Code and any applicable Borough Ordinance or other legal requirement. This being said, in general, Roberts' Rules of Order shall apply tot the conduct of public meetings Authority oft the Chair: The Chair shall act as a facilitator, assisting members to focus on the agenda, discussions, and deliberations. The Chair shall be responsible. for maintaining the decorum at the public meetings and uniformly subject to the authority of the Chair. enforcing the rules expressed in this Resolution. Limit Deliberations: Members will limit their comments to the subject matter, item, or motion being currently considered by Councl/Committee, subject to the Obtaining the Floor: Members wishing to speak must first obtain the floor by civility and decorum rules expressed in this Resolution. being recognized by the Chair. PUBICPARICPATION Every public meeting shall provide opportunity for residents and taxpayers Borough Council adopts, under Section 710 of thel Pennsylvania Sunshine Act, the following rules for] public comment andj participation: atj public Boroughmeetings 1. Public comment will bes scheduled twice on any agenda, the first of which to be scheduled at thel beginning of meetings, prior to Council/Committe: deliberating or taking official action on any matter. The first public comment period shall be reserved for matters on the agenda for consideration by the Council or Committee. The second public comment period shall be for any other matters relating tot thej purpose of the Committee or matters that arel before or of concern tot the Borough during the public comment portion of all Borough public meetings, subject to a three (3) minute time limit. The Chair may allocate time among those wishing to speaki in order to manage meeting time. tol bel heard. The following rules shall apply: general information fort the Council as a whole. 2. Residents and taxpayers of the Borough have the right to comment on 2 3. 4. 5. Residents and taxpayers are asked to sign a register at thel beginning of each meeting brieflyi indicating the nature of thej public comment they willl be providing and whether they wish tos speak during the first or second comment period, or both. Councl/Committee must provide their addresses on the: register for verification of residency and verbally state their name and residency status for the record. Residents and taxpayers of the Borough wishing to address At the discretion of the Chair, members of the public who are: not residents or taxpayers may be recognized to speak; however, they must also provide their address on the register for verification of residency and will be required to verbally state their name and residency status for the record. granted the floor by the Chair. 6. There shall be noi interruptions when ai member of the public has been 7. Atl Borough Council meetings, thel President of Council shall be the spokesperson: for Council and will generally refer citizen concerns to the Borough Manager 8. The Chair has the discretion to: rule out of order comments that appear 9. Ifai resident needs a reasonable accommodation to attend a meeting, they should contact thel Borough Secretary nol later than three days in advance so the Borough 10. If, int thej judgment of Counci/Committee, the period for public comment is unusually Iong, the atmosphere has become unruly, or the comments become repetitive, Councl/Committee may move to close public comment or defer all or portions of the public comment to a subsequent regular meeting or toa a work session or an advertised for research by staff andi reporting back to Council. disruptive, vulgar, defamatory, or redundant. can make the accommodation: fort them to attend thei meeting. special meeting tol be held in advance of the nexti regular meeting. RECORDING AND STREAMING public meetings by members of the public: Borough Council adopts the following rules for recording and streaming of its 1. Those persons present at aj meeting andi intending to record/stream the meeting shall notify the Chair that they have an active audio or visual recording/streaming device. The Chair shall notify the public that the meeting is being recorded/streamed. 2. Recording/streaming: devices shall be conspicuously placed in the meeting 3. Such recordling/streaming devices shall be operated so as not to interrupt or disrupt the activities of thej participants of the meeting or the ability of the public tol be 4. All recording/streaming devices shall be powered by their own source, preferably handheld, and not mounted to chairs, tables or any objects permanently housed int the meeting room. Ift the recording device is mounted on a tripod or stand it must be meeting, and after adjournment is prohibited. Noj person shall have the right to make public comment: without being recorded/streamed if recording devices are present. room, in such a position to reasonably record the entire meeting. seated or to observe ai meeting. placed in a designated rear corner of the public seating area. 5. Recording/streaming prior to Call to Order, during any recess of thej public 3 RULES RLLATINGTOMOTIONS, AND VOTING matters are approved by a simple motion. Motions, Resolutions & Ordinances: A motion is the normal means by which ar matter is brought before Councl/Committee for consideration. Most routine At Council meetings, Resolutions need to be approved by a simple majority vote aftera a motion. Ordinances are approved by roll call vote after aj proper Ordinances, such as legislative actions, shall be submitted to the Mayor for A motion requires as second, or sponsorship, by a second member before it can receive consideration at a meeting. Ifa motion is seconded, the motion moves to discussion and then vote. Ifa motion is not seconded, it is lost and no further action ist taken on the matter. The Chair then proceeds with the next item on the agenda. The first rule of parliamentary order is that only one: matter of business can be considered ata at time. That is, when one "main motion" has been properly introduced and seconded, no other main motion can be presented until the first has been disposed of. Int the usual course of business, the motion is disposed of when it is either passed or defeated.However, a number of other things can happen to the motion. signature. motion, including: The motion can be amended. The motion can betabled. The motion can be referred to a committee for furtherconsideration. Action can be postponed until a definite date. Voting: Voting is done in one of two ways- by expressing either favor or opposition or by roll call vote. In any instance wheret the result of expressing favor or opposition seems other than unanimous, ori ini the event of one or more abstentions, the Chair shall call for ai roll call vote. Any member of Councl/Committee may demand ai roll call vote on any question before Coundi/Committee. Conflict of Interest: In the case that a member believes that he/shel has a conflict of interest ini the matter being decided, he/s she is required by law to abstain from voting and tos so inform Counc/Committee orally and in writing to the Borough Secretary oft the nature of the conflict. Ifc Council would be unable to take any action on ai matter because the number of members required to abstain from voting makes the majority or other legally required vote of approval unattainable, thens such members shall be permitted to vote: if said disclosures are made. Abstention: All members of Councl/Committee are: required to vote in favor or in opposition, unless they are required to abstain on grounds of a conflict Mayor's' Tie-Breaking Authority: At Borough Council meetings, the authority of thel Mayor to cast the deciding vote applies whenever, as a result of a tie vote, ofi interest. Council is unable to: enact or pass an Ordinance, Resolution, or motion; declare or fill a vacancy on Council or in any other Borough office;or take any action on any matter lawfully brought beforeit. MAYOR While the Borough Code provides limited statutory powers for the Office of Mayor, he/she is the ceremonial head of Borough government and isi in aj position to exercisel leadership. The Mayor has the right to attend all Council meetings andi is permitted tot take part in discussions, and may vote ini in the case of a tie vote as set forth above. Thel Mayor presides over Council only twice during each term of office- -at the reorganizational meeting of Council in even-numbered years. Ift the mayori is absent ori incapacitated or therei is a vacancy in the office, the duties of the office shall be discharged by the President of Council or, ini the absence or incapacity of the] President of Council ori if therei isa a vacancy ini the office, by the Vice President of Thel President or Vicel President of Council while acting as Mayor shall have power to veto aj proposed ordinance or the annual tax resolution under section 1302(a) (relating to tax levy) or tol break a tie but shall notl have power to vote as a member of Council. Council. ONCEENVANCEOERUIS These rules, wholly or in part, may be amended or repealed by majority vote in any regularly scheduled meeting of Borough Council. Rules adopted to expedite and facilitate the transition of the business of Councl/Committee in an orderly fashion shall be deemed tol bej procedural only, and the failure to strictly observe any such rules shall not affect thej jurisdiction of or invalidate any action taken by Councl/Committee. DULY ADOPTED this 23rd day of December, 2024, by the Borough of Hanover: in lawful session duly assembled. THE BOROUGH OFHANOVER ATTEST: CoundiVice,President -RhAr 5