After months of complaining they were shut out of the agenda process, two Independence Township trustees got their way.
At the May 19 meeting, by a 4-2 vote, the board adopted a new Rules and Procedures Policy, which included a new agenda policy presented by Trustee David Lohmeier and Treasurer Curt Carson.
Lohmeier said they were going for three things with the new agenda policy.
‘One: We want to ensure that all board members without discrimination have the ability to have items of importance heard and addressed in a timely manner on the agenda,? he said. ‘Two: Trying to make the agenda a responsibility to the board rather than a deliverable to the board, and three: to improve the quality of our discussions by requiring earlier distribution of the meeting packages? submitted material.?
Carson said everyone should be able to submit items to be put on the agenda freely while working with Lohmeier on the agenda policy; they drafted a board rules and procedures policy as well.
‘We wanted to deal with issues with the whole meeting concept from the point of putting things on the agenda to the time to review to getting them to the meeting and then to meeting itself,? he said.
However, Carson recommended adopting the rules and procedure policy, which included the agenda policy, as opposed to just adopting the agenda policy alone.
Trustee Neil Wallace said ‘smooth and efficient running of the meeting? should not be the primary goal of the board.
‘Not that I think they should be free for alls, but our principle goal here should be getting the people’s business done,? he said. ‘Sometimes that takes longer deliberation and thoughtful consideration, so I am concerned about that.?
Some of the rules and procedures policy included the adoption of Robert’s Rules of Order, limiting board members to debate or interrupt members of the public during their comments, limiting board members to only 10 minutes total per topic, and any items not discussed by 10 p.m. will be carried over to the next meetings agenda.
Trustee Larry Rosso said he had no problem adopting meeting policies, but said ‘it will come down to the same old thing.?
‘The dispute will always be an interpretation. Some things are not going to be open to interpretation and some aspects even in this will be open to interpretation, and the other is enforcement,? Rosso said. ‘Any policy is only as good as the enforcement, especially as it applies.?
Trustee Mark Petterson also fully supported the new meeting rules policy.
‘There are no rules that govern the behavior of board members, nor had there been a need to in previous years until now,? he said.
He also agreed the policy would ‘only be as good as the enforcement.?
The agenda policy alone failed 4-3.
‘I’m extremely disappointed that board members would support this only if it came with all this other pork that comes along with it,? said Lohmeier.
Wagner said the rules and meeting policy ‘has a lot of pluses.?
‘When the 10 o’clock hour comes along, the board has got to vote on it, either we go forward or we don’t,? Wagner said. ‘My worry is we are going to end up with so many things on the agenda we’ll never finish these meetings. Of course they’re put on the very next agenda, that’s fine and we’ll just get as much as we can done, it’s a simple as that.?
Wallace said the list of rules was ‘incomplete, inadequate, and an abridgment? of his ability to ‘function as a trustee.?
‘I believe there are elements of this procedure policy that are in fact illegal and I have no problem if this is passed by this board attesting whether or not my estimation of that is correct,? he said. ‘I think you’re going much too far in trying to usurp the boards authority to run the township because statutorily that’s how it’s suppose to happen.?
Wagner said he was opposed to adopting any policy even back in January.
“I thought the way things went before had never been a problem,” he said.
However, Petterson said the first agenda policy adopted in January was never broken.
‘It was very difficult for the’supervisor’to respond’to the large number of’requests within the policy time frame.’Therefore the trustees took no reply as a rejection,? he said. “However, the trustees in turn failed to fulfill the policy by asking the clerk or treasurer to support their request.?
He said of all the e-mails he had seen, not one asked the Clerk or Treasurer for support.
‘To publicly push blame on to any of’the three full time officials that they can’t get items on the agenda is untrue and a blatant attempt to discredit these officials,? said Petterson. ‘The only ones that are to blame are trustees’themselves by not fulfilling the policy.????