Effective Council Meetings

This report, which contains four separate articles, focuses on preserving (or bringing back) the level of respect, courtesy, and civility needed in council meetings to successfully conduct the public’s business. It addresses the need to adopt rules of procedure, whether formal or informal, that establish clear standards of behavior and ensure a proper level of decorum; offers a simplified and slimmed-down version of Robert’s Rules of Order, applying the salient points of parliamentary procedure to the conduct of public meetings; and introduces a values framework as a way to help elected officials identify what lies at the root of public problems and make wise decisions in response.