To comply with the provisions of AB 361, a Brown Act Urgency Measure that took effect Oct. 1, all Roseville City Council, board and commission meetings will now allow only in-person public comment.
Since the pandemic began, public meetings have allowed for call-in public comment, as authorized by one of the Governor’s executive orders, which expired Sept. 30. If the City were to continue to allow call-in public comment, AB 361 requires the City to leave the public comment period open for the entire duration of a timed general public comment period if the City has one. The City of Roseville’s general public comment period is 25 minutes, so this would require leaving phone lines open for that length of time, during each of the two general public comment periods in City Council meetings. This would add nearly an hour to those meetings.
“We’re balancing public engagement with efficiency under the requirements of the new law,” said Mayor Krista Bernasconi. She noted that the Council receives email input at [email protected], though comments are not read during meetings.
The Roseville Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC), which is independent of the City Council, will make its own determinations about how to comply with the provisions of AB 361. To learn about how to participate in IRC meetings, you can view its agendas here.