» Meetings » Citizens' Communications

Citizens' Communications Guidelines

Any person may speak during the Citizens’ Communication part of anyCentral Health Board of Managers meeting at which Citizens’ Communication appears on the agenda and during any public hearing that is posted as such.
In advance of speaking, an individual must complete a sign-in sheet that includes the person’s name, address and organization being represented, if applicable. At the person’s option, he or she may provide his or her telephone number and email address.
The Chairperson or presiding officer will call speakers in the order in which they are listed on the sign-in sheet.
Each speaker has a limit of three (3) minutes.
Each speaker may address the Board only one time during any particular Citizens’ Communication or the particular public hearing.
A speaker may not “donate” his or her three minutes or any part thereof to another speaker.
A speaker does not have the right to speak if he or she signs in after Citizens’ Communication or the public hearing is closed. The hearing will be closed once the last individual who has signed-in has spoken.
Depending on the number of persons wishing to speak, the Chairperson or presiding officer may, in his or her discretion, impose additional procedural guidelines on the time and/or manner of speaker’s presentations to ensure the efficient and effective conduct of the meeting.
Due to the restrictive nature of the Open Meetings Act and to fulfill proper notice of meeting requirements, the board is restricted from discussing any item that is not posted on the agenda for that meeting. Therefore, the board is unable to address your comments and thus Citizens Communication is most usually a one-way communication vehicle. However, Central Health staff may follow up with you regarding the topic of your communication as appropriate.