Only three days after the death of 90-year-old Thomas Murphy, a lifetime Long Beach resident and loyal city government watchdog, the City Council will vote on an item Tuesday that would go a long way toward killing his legacy of citizen participation –and prevent others from following in his footsteps.

The item (No. 22 on the agenda) would all but eliminate the ability of private citizens to force the City Council to publicly debate issues that have been placed on its “consent calendar” — that is, issues that have been grouped together for a single stamp of approval in open session after the the mayor, city council and/or city staff have considered them in private.

Currently, anybody who believes an item on the consent calendar ought to be aired in open council session can remove that item from the single-stamp vote by making a request before a council meeting.

Under the change that Mayor Bob Foster has put before the council for consideration Tuesday, “only the Mayor, Councilmembers or the City Manager may remove items from the Consent Calendar.” Public input would be reduced a three-minute speech at the podium.

The change in procedure amounts to a major limitation in public participation in city governance. Someone who disagrees with an item on the consent calendar would speak, then sit down. There would be no chance for dialogue on an issue. After a few three-minute objections, the item would likely still be passed, en masse, with all the other items on the consent calendar.

After hearing someone’s objections, the mayor, the city manager or a member of the council could conceivably pull an item from the consent calendar. Considering that they have likely already agreed to it, however, that is unlikely.

Many longtime council-watchers are critical of the increasing use of the consent calendar by city management to push through proposals it favors. Of course, a few of those council-watchers have been increasingly abusive of their right to remove items from the consent calendar, slowing down the already long meetings by pulling minor issues and critiquing them with long-winded commentary that serves no interest other than their own desperate need for attention.

Interestingly, Mayor Foster suggested the changes in the consent-calendar rules a few days after Harvey Cochrane, a fixture at city council meetings who goes repeatedly to the podium to speak on the full spectrum of issues, pulled several minor items from the Nov. 13 consent calendar — some mistakenly — and subjected everybody in the council chambers to his Roseanne Rosannadanna routine.

Nonetheless, that is the unfortunate price the Mayor and Councilmembers ought to have to pay to protect the right of legimate public debate. Forcing a citizen to read the consent calendar several days in advance, track down a councilmember and make a case for removing an item is too great a burden. Councilmembers work part-time and are very difficult to reach–particularly for someone who may oppose their opinions.

This item, as proposed, would further remove Long Beach government from the people–moving it further toward a tight little club of insiders, out of the reach of dissenters.

Tags: Consent calendar, Long Beach City Council, Mayor Bob Foster, public debate, Roseanne Rosannadanna, Thomas Murphy

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Mooju D Katt 1 year ago 1 point
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I disagree. Putting restrictions on repeated trips to the podium would streamline council meetings and encourage more people to come down and put their two cents in. Everyone who's gone to a city council meeting with a legitimate beef (e.g, airport expansion, port pollution, big box ban, et cetera) has been held hostage by the same 3 or 4 people, blathering on for hours, albeit in three minute chunks.

Every person in Long Beach should have the right to speak out at council, but three minutes per person per meeting is enough.

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Eric Bradley 1 year ago 1 point
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Public comments from Long Beach residents, however inconvenient it might be to councilmembers, should not be restricted.

Call your councilmembers today and tell them that we elected them to be fair and this agenda item cuts Long Beach residents out of their government! If we don't stop this now, we may learn a few months from now that even more restrictions will be placed on public comment-- maybe to only one minute once a week.

If you don't reach your councilmember today, please join me tomorrow at the City Council meeting for a last stand on this issue. Defend our rights!

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Pat Towner 1 year ago 1 point
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I just wonder how far we will go in this City. As an old-time activist I remember when each councilperson spoke on behalf of the entire City, there were no 9 districts. Then in the interest of more responsive government we broke up the City and inherited a titular head, the Mayor, There and then we citizen's lost our impact, for if you cannot please your councilmember, there is very little chance you can appeal to the rest of the council, because they for the most part will defer to the councilmember from that district. Now we have to rely once again on our councilmember, where did open government go. Isn't that what was touted in the Business Journal, the Grunion, the PT? Is this govenment for the many run by the few - and only with their permission?

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Ann Cantrell 1 year ago 1 point
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Putting this item on the agenda on the night of Thomas Murphy's viewing is not only extremely poor timing, but in terrible taste. I did not always agree with Mr. Murphy's tactics, but I always admired the time and effort he took to read and dissect the agenda. I doubt that anyone else in the city, councilmembers and staff included, knew as much about what was being voted on each week.

This latest effort by the mayor to silence free speech by the public is very scary. The council will do well to remember that what is being done to the public's rights can also happen to you. I have witnessed several instances in which Mayor Foster has attempted to curb a councilmember's time and comments. Be very careful what you vote for--you may be next!

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