Commissioners Find Public Comment Rules Just Fine

CREST HAVEN – In response to Commissioner Will Morey’s concerns that the county commissioners’ recently adopted public comment policy was too harsh, county Counsel Jeff Lindsay reviewed the matter and determined there was no need to change the policy.

“The policy, as it is written, is a valid, legal policy,” Lindsay said at the May 13 commissioners meeting.

However, he said, it was a policy matter for the board to decide.

The majority of the governing body agreed with Lindsay, who said the wording, particularly the warning against comment that was “repetitive, truculent or slanderous,” came directly from Third Circuit Court of Appeals rulings.

Vice Director Andrew Bulakowski said he thought Lindsay did a good job researching the topic and advised against changing the policy as written.

“When you start working around the law you open yourself up to recourse,” Bulakowski said.

Morey, on the other hand, said he is embarrassed when the commissioner director reads the Rules of Order for Public Comment at the beginning of the comment portion of each meeting.

The rules were intended to maintain an orderly atmosphere in which the commissioners may “attend to county business fairly and efficiently.” They were seemingly enacted to prohibit what Commissioner Bobby Barr referred to as a “clown show” conducted by members of the public.

Morey, Lindsay said, had wanted clarification on two matters, the first being whether the rules violated the First Amendment.

“I’m fully confident it’s a valid, legal policy,” the attorney said.

Morey was more concerned that the tone be one of welcome and not have a chilling effect on free speech.

One of the reasons Lindsay gave for not recommending adopting the changes Morey suggested was that they would make infractions more subjective. As the rules now read, “clapping, booing, or shouts of approval or disagreement” from the audience are not allowed.

Morey asked if that would pertain to, for example, a firefighter being honored at a commissioner meeting. Lindsay said clapping would be inappropriate then, and the director could ask for order.

Morey had suggested that the term “excessive” be used to suggest that order be imposed when things were out of hand. Lindsay said adding that term introduces a level of subjectivity, while no clapping is absolute. He added that a governing body does not have to wait to be abused before asking a speaker to sit down.

However, there was no objective definition of abuse given, meaning the determination of what is “truculent” is at the discretion of the director or another member of the board.

Morey attempted to relay what municipalities were doing as far as inviting speakers to take a specified amount of time giving public comment; however, he was shot down on a couple of attempts by his fellow commissioners, who did not want to hear what the towns were doing.

“I’ll stop you there, I don’t care what Lower Township does; we govern the county of Cape May,” Bulakowski said.

“Mr. Director, how much longer are we going to proceed with this discussion?” Barr added.

Barr said Morey had given his opinion and the other commissioners had given theirs, saying, “Now it’s time to move on. Mr. Director, carry on.”

Barr, Desiderio, Bulakowski and Commissioner Melanie Collette all agreed with Lindsay that the commissioners and the Rules of Order are welcoming to the public. Lindsay said there is a welcoming statement twice in the first three sentences of the rules.

Morey suggested that while some municipalities have rules of order, they are not stated or are printed on the back of the agenda, rather than expressed before public comment is given. He made these recommendations as well, but received no second from the rest of the board.

Contact the reporter, Christopher South, at csouth@cmcherald.com or call 609-886-8600, ext. 128.