The agenda for
2 December 2011
does not include the detailed packet materials for most of the
items to be voted on.
However, it does include a table of dollar amounts and other details
for bids that were to be voted on,
so the public doesn’t have to go to the work session and scribble
down what staff read aloud.
There’s also this interesting boilerplate:
Proposed changes to ordinances must be read or presented in written form at two meetings held not less than one week apart. A vote on the following listed matters will occur at the next regularly scheduled meeting. On first reading, presentation by MPC staff and discussion only by Commissioners will be heard.So in Chatham County the Commission can’t just decide one day to change an ordinance.Comments, discussion and debate from members of the public will be received only at the meeting at which a vote is to be taken on one of the following listed items.
Also it appears that the public does get to discuss and debate ordinance changes.
The
minutes for 2 December 2011
contain quite a bit of detail as to who said what.
Plus for each agenda item that was approved it includes
the agenda packet information,
such as item IX-2 on the right here,
which is about local participation in jail construction.
This isn’t as transparent as Travis County, Texas. Chatham County doesn’t put the agenda packet items in the agenda, and doesn’t do videos. But it’s still more transparent than Lowndes County, Georgia, which doesn’t provide agenda packet items unless you do an open records request for each item you want to see.
-jsq
