Regional Board Meetings-Public Comment

Regional Board Meeting – Public Comment (04/17/23)

Public Comment

The Southeast Arkansas Regional Library Board will conduct its meetings in compliance with the state Open Meeting Law with board meetings open for public observation and recording. While not required by law to allow the public to speak at meetings, the board values the ideas and insights of constituents and will allow up to thirty (30) minutes of each board meeting for public comment.

Public comment time is provided for the public to express their opinions or concerns about matters over which the Board of Trustees has authority or responsibility. Comments are intended to be statements from speakers. The board will not respond at this meeting to questions, requests for information or requests for action. An appropriate response may be made at a later time after board members have sufficient opportunity to consider and deliberate on the issue.

Individuals wishing to address the board must have signed in at least five minutes prior to the start of the board meeting. An individual must list his/her name, home address, and topic to be discussed. At the end of the regularly scheduled board meeting, comments may be accepted from those individuals who signed in prior to the start of the board meeting. Each speaker will be allowed a maximum of five (5) minutes to address the board until the allotted time is up. The board president or chair of the meeting will call on those persons one at a time to stand and address the board for no more than the allocated time. Upon recognition by the board president or presiding officer, the individual should state his/her full name, home address, and the reason for wishing to speak.

Should the number of speaker requests exceed the allotted time in the meeting, the Board President or chair of the meeting may limit speakers to a maximum of three (3) minutes, if necessary, in order to accommodate as many voices as possible. Requests for time to speak will usually be granted in the order the requests were received, although priority may be given to residents of the library taxing district. Speakers may not yield their time to another individual in order to allow someone more minutes. And it is possible that not all persons requesting time will be allowed to speak. Anyone not allowed to speak will be considered signed in for the next board meeting.

Constituents will not be allowed to comment during other portions of the board meeting unless comments are specifically requested by the board. Interruptions or interference with the orderly business of the board will not be allowed. The presiding officer may terminate a speaker’s privilege to speak if, after being called to order, the speaker persists in improper conduct or remarks.