Dickson County Commission Adopts New Public Comment Policy

CHARLOTTE, Tenn. — Residents addressing the Dickson County Commission will have up to three minutes to speak under a revised public comment policy approved by commissioners, with the overall public comment portion of each meeting limited to 30 minutes.

The Dickson County Commission approved the policy during its Sept. 21 regular meeting following discussion about how broadly residents should be allowed to address county government.

Under the revised policy, individual speakers are limited to three minutes, while the commission will devote up to 30 minutes to public comments during a meeting.

County attorney Andrew Mills explained that the revised policy was developed following changes in state law regarding public comment requirements for local government bodies.

One of the primary questions during the commission's discussion was whether residents would be restricted to speaking only about items appearing on that meeting's agenda.

The answer was no.

Comments Not Limited to Agenda Items

Mills explained that the policy allows residents to speak about matters within the general jurisdiction of the County Commission rather than restricting comments exclusively to agenda items.

That distinction could be important for residents wanting to bring an issue to the commission's attention before it has formally reached the agenda.

Mills said comments could concern county matters or even relevant state issues that have some connection to the work of county government.

However, the public comment period is not intended to become an open forum for subjects completely unrelated to the commission's responsibilities.

Mills described the boundary as excluding "far-flung" matters that have no reasonable connection to something the County Commission could address.

The chairman will have discretion in determining whether a speaker's comments fall within the appropriate scope.

Three Minutes Per Speaker

The revised policy establishes a three-minute limit for each person who speaks.

That limit is intended to give individual residents an opportunity to address commissioners while keeping the public comment portion of the meeting manageable.

The total public comment period can last up to 30 minutes.

The commission did not have anyone signed up to speak during the public comment portion of the Sept. 21 meeting.

The new rules nevertheless establish the framework that will govern residents who choose to address commissioners at future meetings.

Broader Than the Meeting Agenda

The clarification over agenda items is one of the more significant elements of the policy.

A resident does not necessarily have to wait until the County Commission places a particular subject on its agenda before raising the issue publicly.

Instead, the subject must have a reasonable connection to county government or another matter relevant to the commission's responsibilities.

That leaves residents with a broader opportunity to raise concerns while still allowing the chairman to keep comments within the scope of county business.

Commissioners approved the revised policy during the Sept. 21 meeting.

For residents who want to speak directly to their county commissioners, the basic rules are now clearer: speakers generally get up to three minutes, the entire public comment period is capped at 30 minutes, and comments do not have to be limited exclusively to what appears on that night's agenda.