Why hasn’t “open public comment” been allowed on any Washington County Commission Agenda this entire year?

UPDATE: A few comments were allowed beginning 10/18/22, but they were heavily restricted, requiring pre-notification nearly a week in advance (and only 10 people could speak for 2 min. each, with a 20 minute total limit). Please urge commissioners to follow the rules set by Utah County Commissioners, listed at bottom.

In county commission meetings across Utah and the U.S., open public comment has been included on every single agenda for years. Why not in Washington County? Ask our Commissioners to follow Utah County’s model (details at bottom). Private meetings, listening sessions, townhall meetings (and even work meetings) are great but insufficient.   Here are over a dozen reasons why other kinds of meetings do not meet the public need, and why open public comment should be included on every agenda:

1– other meetings have no consistently set dates or times that are known to all well in advance

2- other meetings are rare, sporadic, and often difficult to get, with appointment times frustratingly changing multiple times

3– other meetings generally get no media coverage

4- for most other meetings, the public isn’t invited to attend, and there is no public notice

5- for most other meetings, the public has no way of knowing what transpired

6– for most other meetings, proceedings aren’t recorded or put in the public record

7– for most other meetings, coverage isn’t available to all publically, via zoom, Facebook live, YouTube, etc.

8– nothing seems to come of other kinds of meetings (many constituents have attended townhalls and had private meetings, and they never seem to do any good).

9– urgent input/advice/expertise from the public is often needed before an important vote (for example, the public had crucial statistical insights to share with Commissioners before the vote to certify election results on 7/19/22, but they weren’t permitted to speak).

10– allowing public comment doesn’t decrease engagement, it increases it.  This year, anytime more than a handful of members of the public have shown up to WCC meetings, Commissioners have remarked how rare it is.  If engagement has been at rock-bottom, then allowing comment could only increase it.

11– public comment works well in Utah County Commission meetings, so fears of bad public behavior should not be the thing holding our county back.

12– throughout 2022, our county website had published a deadline for adding items to the agenda. If the public can’t add “open comment” to the agenda, why was this option on the county website? And why was this long-standing option removed from the county website just before their 10/4/22 meeting?

13– other than a 4/5/22 public hearing (limited only to a Harmony Heights issue), why hasn’t ‘open public comment” been on the agenda even once this entire year?

14– public comment is standard practice in counties across Utah and across America.

15– banning public comment is completely un-American and completely unacceptable.  It also reflects very poorly on our County Commissioners.

It’s time to stop banning open public comment from Washington County Commission meeting agendas, effective immediately. Washington County should follow the model set up by Utah County Commission, which is used in countless counties across our nation, as follows:

A. When the agenda goes out for public notice, usually at least one full week before the meeting, links to the full verbiage for all Resolutions/Contracts/etc is provided, except for those with privacy violations. 

B. Public comment specific to agenda items is allowed BEFORE the Commission votes on EACH item.

C. Open public comment on any other topic is allowed at the end of the meeting

D. Each person gets up to 2 minutes at the mic (more, if approved by Commission).  They don’t need to signup first, and there’s no limit on how many people can have a turn.

E. Public comment is also allowed and taken via Zoom.