23-15 DocuSign Envelope ID: EA60E390-BB16-470D-9D87-OF6B88423C9F
RESOLUTION NO. 23-15
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF CLEARWATER,
FLORIDA, AMENDING COUNCIL RULES; PROVIDING AN
EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, Section 2.08 of the Clearwater City Charter requires the City Council
to determine its own rules and order of business; and
WHEREAS, the Courts have ruled that said meetings are considered limited public
forums for purposes of First Amendment analyses; and
WHEREAS, the purpose of City Council meetings is to conduct an orderly meeting,
to receive input from citizens regarding matters on the agenda, and to vote on Council
business; and
WHEREAS, it is vital for local governments in Florida to use their meeting times
productively because Florida law requires all public meetings to be noticed in advance,
and because Florida law generally prohibits two or more Councilmembers from meeting
separately in private; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds that any display of banners or signs by the
audience during City Council meetings is distracting, and reduces the attention that
belongs to the citizen or other speaker who has the floor; and
WHEREAS, individuals bringing those signs occasionally position themselves to
ensure their chosen message remains on camera throughout the City's broadcast of the
meeting, creating a misleading impression that the content of the sign is either endorsed
by the government or endorsed by other citizens when they speak at the podium; and
WHEREAS, the City Council recognizes that commingling campaign activities with
City Council meetings can intimidate City staff, who under Florida law must remain
apolitical during working hours; and
WHEREAS, the City Council desires to promote an orderly meeting by separating
the time for governance —for which the City Council meeting is designed — and the time
for campaigning, which can occur at many other times and locations; and
WHEREAS, the City Council reserves time at each meeting for citizens to speak
on matters unrelated to the agenda, as long as said comments relate to matters within
which the City has the power to act, and as long as said comments do not disrupt the
meeting or supersede discussion regarding items on the agenda; and
Resolution No. 23-15
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WHEREAS, name-calling and personal attacks against an identifiable individual
tend to disrupt meetings by provoking a response from the person targeted by the abusive
language; and
WHEREAS, any person who prefers to communicate via name-calling or personal
attacks retains ample opportunities to do so —for example, by speaking or holding a sign
displaying such messages outside the entrance to the library building in which the Council
meeting is held; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds that during Council meetings, the display of the
middle finger or similar obscene gestures by a person who does not have the floor unfairly
distracts attention from the person to whom the floor belongs at that moment; and
WHEREAS, the Mayor serves as the officer presiding over City Council meetings,
pursuant to Section 2.05 of the Clearwater City Charter; and
WHEREAS, a citizen's plea for action should be directed either to the Mayor as
the Chair of the meeting, or to the Council as a collegial body, because only the collegial
body is authorized under Section 2.01(b) of the Clearwater City Charter to legislate; and
WHEREAS, other local government entities have implemented reasonable rules
of decorum to facilitate an orderly meeting;
now therefore
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF CLEARWATER, FLORIDA:
Section 1. Rule 15, Rules of Conduct, be amended as follows:
At all times during regular and special City Council meetings, along with
meetings of the Pension Trustees, the Council, staff and public shall
conduct themselves in accordance with these Rules of Conduct.
Because the Council functions as a collegial body, with the Mayor serving
as presiding officer, all comments, requests, displays on the overhead
projector, and questions shall be directed toward the Mayor or the Council
as a collegial body. The speaker shall not name any individual
Councilmember(s)other than the Mayor, either verbally or when utilizing the
overhead projector. However, individual Councilmembers may be named
if the speaker is discussing, questioning, or responding to a specific
comment previously made by that Councilmember, or in reference to a prior
vote cast on a specific agenda item by the named Councilmember.
In addition, the Council has adopted a non-exclusive list of examples of
behaviors that disrupt the meeting and will, in the exercise of reasonable
2 Resolution 23-15
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discretion, be ruled out of order by the Mayor. Those disruptive behaviors
include: (1) interrupting another citizen, City staff member, or Council
member when not recognized; (2) shouting or speaking in a manner that
threatens or incites a criminal offense; (3) engaging in name-calling or
personal attacks against an identifiable individual, or displaying any such
material on the City's overhead projector; (4) extending the middle finger or
making other obscene gestures while another person has the floor and is
speaking; (5) refusing to leave the podium once the allotted time to speak
has expired; (6) preventing or attempting to prevent a member of the
audience from seeing or hearing Councilmembers; (7) standing on chairs
or tables, or attempting to rearrange the City's seating; (8) bringing signs or
banners into the Council meeting room, unless advance permission is
obtained from the Mayor and the sign or banner relates solely to an item on
the agenda; (9) wearing any article of clothing or accessory that contains
obscenity or expressly advocates for the election or defeat of a named
individual for any public office, or displaying such materials on the overhead
projector; (10) verbally identifying oneself as a candidate for election or
reelection to any public office while the person is speaking from the podium
or the dais; (11) verbally endorsing a candidate for election or reelection to
any public office while the person is speaking from the podium or the dais.
When ruling a person out of order, the Mayor shall warn the person that
compliance with Rule 15 is required. If the person refuses to correct their
behavior, or if the person continues to violate the rule after having already
been warned during that same meeting, then the Mayor may either, in the
exercise of reasonable discretion, direct the individual to yield the floor, or
direct the person to leave the City Council meeting. Upon request by the
Mayor, the Clearwater Police Department shall escort the person from the
Council Chambers. In such cases, the person shall not be readmitted to the
same meeting, but shall be permitted to return to future meetings. The
Mayor may also recess the meeting at any time during or after a breach of
decorum in order to restore order.
To facilitate an orderly meeting, the determination of the Mayor shall be final
regarding all decorum matters unless appealed by another Councilmember
in the manner and timing described in Robert's Rules of Order, as amended
from time to time.
Section 2. This resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption.
3 Resolution 23-15
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PASSED AND ADOPTED this 7th day of September, 2023.
F�jDocuSigned by:
Brian J Aungst, Senior
Mayor
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Approved as to form: Attest:
LLlocuSigned by: LDocuSigned by:
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David Margolis Rosemarie Call
City Attorney City Clerk
4 Resolution 23-15
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5 Resolution 23-15