Effective Local Government Archives

It is a basic principle of parliamentary procedure that the decision of the majority, voting at a properly called meeting, is the decision of the body as a whole. The members whose views did not prevail are bound to go along with the majority. This goes back deep in time, to the origins of our…

Local governments face a tough climate these days. Customs of courtesy have faded and people are often both passionate and rude about their issues. If you are a mayor or presiding officer of a public body, it is critical that you control disorder in your chambers. Council meetings are meetings of the council The basic…

Today is our primary election in Washington State. Seattle Times writer Kate Riley has published an insightful column about “my favorite politicians.”

Everyone wants effective meeting management, but how do we get there?

Guest post by Tami A. Tanoue, CIRSA Executive Director Those who have been working with municipalities for an extended period have observed a phenomenon that occurs at the governing body level. Let’s call this phenomenon the Outlier Syndrome.

This post offers our readers a brilliant paper by municipal attorney Brett Vinson on the dangers of public comment.

Guest post by Bob Jean, ICMA/WMCA Senior Advisor Got a really hot issue and a divided community? Too often, if you hold a traditional public hearing to deal with it, you run the risk that each side will simply line up and use their three minutes to tell the Council how terrible they are no…

The City of Olympia has given us permission to share this quick-guide poster, which you may adapt for your own meetings.

A reader writes, “The city council has never used much parliamentary procedure in our meetings. People speak when they want and sidebar discussions are common.