Three-minute rule pending for Palouse council sessions

The time to speak your mind at Palouse city council meetings may soon be shortened to a three-minute limit after council members Tuesday said a handful of people misused the open forum.

Council members at the Sept. 8 council meeting informed the audience the proposed rule may soon be approved.

For the past several months, residents Steve McGehee and Dixie Reiber have asked questions to the council that council members said drew out the open forum session too long.

“We didn’t ask any questions tonight, and this is the latest we’ve ever got out,” Reiber said in opposition to the rule.

Citizens will also be asked to submit any questions they have in writing to the council before meetings.

“We don’t want to shut down anyone having their say and asking questions,” Bailey said after the meeting.

“I feel personally that there are so many things wrong with this city government, I can understand why they wouldn’t want questions,” McGehee said after the meeting.

Both he and Reiber attempted to ask questions of the council while the council moved through its agenda Tuesday.

Bailey said he and councilmen Mike Milano and Jeff Snook came up with the time limit proposal after examining the policies of other towns like Ephrata and Port Angeles. Bailey read off a rules recommendation from the Web site of the Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC), a consulting and research firm for city governments in Seattle.

Milano, Bailey, and Palouse mayor Michael Echanove all stressed they still welcomed public input at meetings as a healthy way to perform government. Milano also pointed out that citizens can still privately request to meet with a city staff member or city council member.

“Citizens should always feel free to talk to council members,” Milano said.