COVINGTON, KY – On Tuesday evening, the City conducted its first legislative meeting of 2017, welcoming Mayor Joseph U. Meyer, Mayor Pro Tem Michelle Williams, and Commissioners Timothy Downing, Jordan Huizenga and Bill Wells to the Board of Commissioners.

The Mayor and City Commission approved updated legislation regarding guidelines for conducting business and procedures for City Board of Commission meetings. Additionally, the 2017 Board of Commissioners legislative and caucus meeting schedules were approved.

Approved Rules of Procedure for City Board of Commissioners Meetings

Several guideline updates include changes in the preparation of legislative meeting agendas, the order of the meeting agenda, the addition of the consent calendar section and the manner in which the new business section is conducted.

Legislative meeting agendas will be prepared at caucuses.

The public comment section will be moved to the beginning of the meeting. Under the new rules, members of the public may address the Commission by informing the City Clerk of their desire to address the Commission.

Questions asked during the public comment may be answered at a later date. The public comment portion of the meeting is limited to 30 minutes. The Board of Commissioners are not to engage in debate with the speakers, but may ask questions to clarify or better understand the remarks of the speaker.

If a member of the public is interested in addressing the Board of Commissioners to give testimony on specific ordinances during the order of business, they must contact the Office of the City Manager 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

The consent calendar section of the agenda will follow the public comment section. Routine and non-controversial matters are placed in this section of the agenda.

Consent calendar items are considered by the Board of Commissioners as a whole and without amendment, however, if an individual item is objected to, the item will be moved to the appropriate regular business heading (reports of officers and committees, unfinished business, or new business) for further discussion.

Updates have additionally been made to the new business section of the agenda. Commissioners can introduce new items for consideration such as simple motions, resolutions, orders and ordinances. If an item is not approved unanimously by the Board of Commissioners, the item can be added to the agenda of the next legislative meeting with the support of a majority of the Board of Commissioners.

The City Board of Commissioners Meeting guidelines were updated with the intention to enhance the City’s method of fairness, openness, transparency, efficiency and the orderly manner in which public meetings are conducted.

2017 Board of Commissioners Legislative & Caucus Meeting Dates Scheduled

Additionally on Tuesday evening, the Mayor and City Commission approved the scheduling of the City’s 2017 Board of Commissioners legislative and caucus meetings.

Meetings will take place at City Hall, 20 W. Pike Street, on Tuesdays at 6 p.m. To view a complete list of meeting dates, click here.

The next caucus meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 10, and the next legislative meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, January 17.