The Oceanside City Council has agreed to allow people to comment remotely at City Council meetings starting in July, a practice that became standard for many public meetings at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
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Health protocols at the time prevented people from attending in person. Meetings across California and beyond began using the Zoom app to allow people with an internet connection to participate without being in a room together.
The practice also allowed people to join in who otherwise could not because they were ill, too far away, or had other commitments such as child care. However, many cities including Oceanside suspended Zoom speakers after the pandemic ended and in-person meetings resumed. The practice can extend meetings and complicate agendas.
“The city clerk has been working on this for several months and is trying to work out the best way,” said Mayor Esther Sanchez. “It is going to be a huge management issue for the city clerk’s office.”
The ordinance introduced Wednesday requires a second approval from the council, probably in the next few weeks, before it is final.
City Clerk Zeb Navarro proposed two additional changes to make Zoom participation go more smoothly.
He suggested the City Council stop accepting requests to speak after the council considers the consent calendar, which is usually the first business item of the meeting after an invocation, the pledge of allegiance, proclamations and presentations. In Oceanside, that often takes 30 minutes or longer.
A city ordinance now prohibits accepting new requests after the 5 p.m. meeting begins, Navarro said. However, the council does not follow that rule and usually allows anyone to come to the microphone as each item is considered.
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Also, Navarro proposed eliminating a policy that allows a speaker representing a group to have 10 minutes instead of the three minutes allowed for all other speakers. The policy requires at least two other members of the group to be present at the meeting, which would not be possible for Zoom speakers.
The council voted 4-1 to approve the recommendations, with Councilmember Eric Joyce opposed.
Joyce said he thought the requirement to sign up before the consent calendar went “too far.”
“It just seems more restrictive than it needs to be,” Joyce said. “I would rather us err on the side of being more open.”
California Senate Bill 707, enacted Oct. 3 and effective July 1, requires, with limited exceptions, that cities allow remote participation and that remote participants be allowed the same amount of time to speak as those present at the meeting.
Some agencies, including the San Diego City Council, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, and the California Coastal Commission have continued to allow remote participation since the pandemic.
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