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20 <br /> <br />PUBLIC PARTICIPATION <br />No one shall be denied the right to present grievances or offer suggestions for the betterment of <br />municipal affairs at any regular meeting of the Council. (§ 335, City Charter) <br /> <br />The public is guaranteed the right to speak at any regular or special meeting on any subject which will <br />be considered by the City Council before its consideration of the item. (§ 54954.3(a) of the Brown Act) <br /> <br />COUNCIL CHAMBERS EXPECTATIONS OF DECORUM <br />A. We respect your right to participate as citizens, but we expect you to be courteous and polite <br />to the Council, City staff, and other members of the public. <br />B. We respect your right to disagree, but we expect you to express your disagreement only at <br />the podium, or when called and only at the appropriate time. <br />C. We respect your right to dispute the recommendations of the City staff, and we value our <br />employees and the work they do. We ask you to discuss facts and not attack personalities. <br />D. We have zero tolerance for inflammatory, racist, or similar hateful comments from the public. <br />We also have zero tolerance for any displays of support or opposition from the audience as a <br />whole. We expect the public to respect the right of the Council to deliberate in a responsible <br />and purposeful fashion. <br />E. Some examples of behavior that will not be tolerated include: disruptive behavior that <br />interrupts proceedings, threats of harm, use of bull horns or sound amplification equipment, <br />waving signs that block other audience members views. <br />The Mayor, at their discretion, may remind the audience of the Expectations of Decorum and have <br />anyone removed from the Chambers who does not comply and commits acts that disrupt the meeting. <br /> <br />COUNCIL ACTIONS <br />Actions of the Council shall be taken by ordinance, resolution or motion. Actions of the Council require <br />the affirmative votes of a majority of the entire Council membership. The membership of the Council is <br />comprised of a Mayor and six Councilmembers. The Council shall pass ordinances and resolutions only <br />by taking the ayes and nays by an open vote, which shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting. The <br />ayes and nays shall be taken and recorded on all motions. Abstentions shall also be recorded. (SLMC, <br />Title I, Chapter 1, Article 3) <br /> <br />RULES OF PROCEDURE <br />The Council, by ordinance, shall establish rules of procedure for taking actions. Such rules shall: <br />A. Provide that Council actions shall require the affirmative votes of a majority of the entire <br />Council membership. <br />B. Provide for the introduction, publication, adoption, amendment, effective date, and <br />codification of ordinances. <br />C. Provide for the introduction and adoption of resolutions. (§ 330, City Charter) <br /> <br />TIE VOTES <br />Tie votes are lost motions. Except when hearing a Planning item, when all Councilmembers are <br />present, a tie vote whether to grant an appeal from official action shall be considered a denial of such <br />appeal, unless the Council takes another action to consider the matter further. If a tie vote results at a DRAFT