HomeMy Public PortalAbout1999-21 Adopting revised special rules of order for meetings of the Village Council; repealing resolution 98-15 on the same subject matterRESOLUTION NO, 99-21
A RESOLUTION OF THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE
VILLAGE OF KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA, ADOPTING
REVISED SPECIAL RULES OF ORDER FOR MEETINGS OF
THE VILLAGE COUNCIL; REPEALING RESOLUTION 98-
15, ON THE SAME SUBJECT MATTER; AND PROVIDING
FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, in the past various Village Councils have adopted rules to assist in the orderly
conduct of its meetings; and
WHEREAS, this Council wishes to make an amendment to those rules as well as to continue
to provide a comprehensive document containing all the current rules of the Village Council.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE VILLAGE COUNCIL OF THE
VILLAGE OF KEY BISCAYNE, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS:'
Section 1. That the Village Council hereby adopts the following rules of procedure to govem
it in the conduct of its meetings:
1. Reports by the Mayor and Councilmembers should be placed on the Agenda early in
the meeting and prior to other business which might be time consuming.
2. The Village Manager's report shall be presented no later than 10:00 p.m. on the
evening of a Village Council meeting.
3. Approval of the Minutes should be dispensed by unanimous consent if there are no
corrections or additions.
4. There shall be a consent agenda during each regular Village Council meeting. The
consent agenda shall contain resolutions, motions and other pertinent matters which,
in the opinion of the Village Manager, are not controversial and may be handled and
implemented without necessity for discussion. Unless a Councilmember specifically
requests that an item be removed from the consent agenda, such items shall be
approved and adopted by a single motion and roll call vote.
5. All resolutions and ordinances shall be identified on the agenda as to a sponsoring
Councilmember or as to a requesting Village staff member.
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Underlining indicates proposed addition to text of rules.
6. All business shall be accomplished by motion. Motions (or a short summary thereof)
should be presented in writing as a portion of the description of the Agenda item on
the cover sheets of the Council Agenda..
7. A motion should be presented in a clear and concise way. If necessary, the Mayor
or the Village Attorney shall clarify a motion to insure that the Council is fully aware
of the matter being considered.
8. A motion should be seconded prior to any discussion.
9. The Mayor should call on the maker of the motion, once seconded, for an explanation
of the motion prior to calling on any other member of the Council or the public.
10. Except for an emergency found by a majority vote of the Councilmembers present,
no action shall be taken by the Council on any item unless the item is listed as a
motion, resolution or ordinance on the Agenda. This shall not apply to zoning items
which are otherwise listed on the Agenda.
11. Items presented simply as a report shall be specifically listed as such. No action shall
be taken at that time by the Council upon a report item, unless the majority of the
Councilmembers present find that an emergency exists. Accordingly, action on
reports, if no emergency is found, may be taken solely at a subsequent meeting in
accordance with these rules of order.
12. Voice votes are to be used whenever possible unless a Roll -Call is requested by any
member.
13. A Roll -Call vote should be used for all ordinances.
14. A Roll -Call vote should be called on a rotational basis so that a different member of
the Council is called on to vote first, a different member second and so on. The
Mayor should not always be the last to vote, but should be called on a regular
rotation.
15. When there are 3, but not 4, affirmative votes for an item of business (other than an
ordinance) under circumstances in which one or more Councilmembers are absent,
any absent Councilmember may subsequently move for reconsideration of the item,
at the next regular council meeting.
16. When there are 3, but not 4, affirmative votes for an ordinance under circumstances
in which one or more Councilmembers are absent, the ordinance shall automatically
be continued to the next regular meeting of the Village Council for final action, and
this shall be announced by the Village Clerk prior to adjournment.
17. The Council will develop, foster and encourage open, honest but gentle
communications between all members of the Council and the public.
18. The Council will be considerate of and show respect for each member of the public.
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19. The Council will make a sincere effort to understand the issues being raised by
another Councilmember or members of the public and seek to address those issues
to the best interest of the Village.
20. The Council meetings will be conducted in a business like, yet open and friendly way
so as to allow most efficient accomplishment of the Village business without
unnecessary formalities while respecting the rights of each individual to express
his/her opinion.
21. Presentations by members of the public are limited to three minutes unless a greater
period of time is authorized by the Council.
22. Councilmembers are encouraged to regularly attend and participate in Council
meetings, workshops, planning sessions, LPA meeting, etc. so that the input and
perspective of all Councilmembers is received. If Councilmembers will be absent,
they should make every effort to notify the Village Clerk in advance of the meeting.
Section 2. Resolution 98-15, concerning the same subject matter as this Resolution, is
hereby repealed. This shall not operate to revive those resolutions repealed or replaced by
Resolution 98-15.
Section 3. Effective Date. This Resolution shall be effective immediately from and after
adoption hereof.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 20th day of April, 1999.
JOE I. RASCO, MAYOR
HITA H. ALVAREZ, CMC, VILLAGE CLE
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGAL SUFFICIENC
RIC�WEISS, VILLAGE ATTORNEY
103001\Resolutions\Revised Special Rules Dated March 12, 1999
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