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The following standard rules shall become and the same are established for the conduct of the proceedings of the city council:

A. The city council may be convened in special meeting at any time in the manner prescribed by law, but no special meeting shall be held at any place other than that prescribed for holding of the regular meetings unless that place is unavailable due to circumstances beyond the control of the city council.

B. The mayor shall take the chair at the hour appointed for the meeting of the council and, having called the members to order, shall preserve order and decorum, and in case of disturbance or disorderly conduct in the chamber may direct the same to be cleared of spectators or of the person or persons causing the disturbance or disorderly conduct.

C. The clerk, in calling the roll of the council, shall call the names of the members in their alphabetical order.

D. In all elections to office the roll shall be called; the vote of the members shall be given “vive voce” and shall be entered on the journal.

E. All questions of order shall be decided by the mayor, subject to an appeal to the council.

F. If any member shall transgress any rule of the council, the mayor or any member may call the offending member to order, in which case the member so called to order shall immediately take his seat and be silent, unless permitted by the council to make an explanation; and the council, if appealed to, shall decide the question of order.

G. An appeal from the decision of the mayor upon any question shall be allowed and put, only on the demand of at least two (2) members.

H. Upon an appeal the question shall be: “Shall the decision of the chair be sustained?” The roll shall be called, the ayes and noes be taken and recorded in the journal.

I. Every member present when a question is put shall vote unless the council, for special reasons, shall excuse that member. In determining the number of votes necessary to carry a question only the ayes and noes shall be counted.

J. Every motion or proposition shall be reduced to writing, if the mayor or any member shall so request.

K. The order of proceedings may be suspended or changed at any meeting, for the time only, by a vote of the majority of members present.

L. The call for the previous question shall be entertained only upon the demand of two (2) members, and while pending shall preclude all amendments and debate upon the main question; and shall be decided by a vote upon the following proposition: “Shall the main question be now put?”

M. Any question containing two (2) or more propositions shall be divided upon the demand of any member.

N. Upon the call of any member, the ayes and noes upon any question shall be recorded upon the journal, but such call shall not preclude amendments before the main question is put.

O. The mayor or any member shall have the liberty to protest against any ordinance or resolution which they may deem injurious to the public or any individual, and have the reasons of their protest entered upon the journal, but such protest and reasons therefor must be reduced to writing, signed by the protestant, and filed with the clerk within twenty-four (24) hours from the time of the adjournment of the meeting at which such ordinance or resolution shall have been passed.

P. A motion to adjourn shall always be in order unless the council is engaged in voting.

Q. A motion to adjourn or to lay on the table shall be decided without debate.

R. Any ordinance or resolution, after commitment and report thereon, may be recommitted at any time prior to the final passage thereof.

S. In the filling of blanks in any resolution, order or ordinance presented to the council, the first names moved, the longest time stated and the largest sum presented shall be the first put.

T. When a question is under debate, no motion shall be entertained except a motion to adjourn, to lay on the table, to postpone indefinitely, to postpone to a certain date, to commit or amend; which several motions shall have the precedence in the order here given.

U. All ordinances should be read by title three (3) times. The title of all ordinances shall include a comprehensive summary and if possible a statement of legislative intent.

1. The first reading shall be by title only.

2. The second reading shall include a reading of the title and shall be subject to such hearings as are required by the city council or provided by the city Charter and the laws of the state of Washington.

3. The third reading shall be by title only.

4. No ordinance shall be revised or amended by its title only, but any ordinance revised or any ordinance amended shall be inserted at length in the ordinance reviving or amending the same. Upon the passage thereof, the vote thereon shall be taken by ayes and noes, entered upon the journal.

5. Copies of an ordinance shall be available to the council and to the public on or before the time of the first meeting.

6. The council may change or suspend any of the above rules by a majority vote of those present. The vote of the majority for suspension or change shall be for that one (1) time only.

V. No member shall leave a meeting of the council without permission of a majority of the members present.

W. No member of the city council, or officer of the city, shall be accepted or approved by the council as surety on any official bond required by law or any ordinance of the city, for any officer of the city.

X. Charges against any officer of the city shall be in writing, verified by affidavits, and having been read shall be laid on the table or referred to a committee for investigation without debate.

Y. When a member is about to speak, they shall raise their hand to be recognized, and the mayor shall pronounce the name of the member entitled to speak. No member shall speak more than twice on the same question, except by unanimous consent of the council.

Z. All business brought before this council by motion, resolution or any other way and laid upon the table shall be considered as finally disposed of, unless taken from the table by order of the council, before adjournment of the third regular meeting subsequent to the meeting at which it was tabled.

AA. Whenever at the time appointed for the meeting of the council there shall not be a quorum present, it shall be lawful for the members present to order the chief of police to compel the members absent, or any of them, and cause them to appear forthwith at the place of meeting, and there remain until the meeting adjourns or leave of absence be granted them.

BB. It shall also be lawful for the mayor, or any member or members, in numbers less than a quorum, who may have assembled at the time and place appointed for a meeting of the council, to adjourn to a subsequent time, and cause the chief of police to give notice to the absent members of the council of the time to which such adjournment shall have been made, unless said member(s) be excused for their absence upon sufficient reason presented to the council.

CC. If a quorum is not present at a scheduled meeting, and the terms of subsection (BB) of this section are not implemented, the meeting shall be adjourned until the next regularly scheduled meeting, unless a special meeting is called to conduct emergent or other required business of city council prior to that time.

DD. The rules of parliamentary practice set forth in “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall govern this council in all matters to which they are applicable when not inconsistent with the Constitution and laws of the state of Washington, these rules, or any ordinance of the city or order of the council.

EE. When the meeting of the council is about to be dissolved, every member shall retain his seat until the mayor shall have announced adjournment.

FF. If the regular meeting date of the council shall fall on a holiday, then such regular meeting shall be held on the following day.

GG. For the purposes of maintaining an accurate recording of city council meetings, all persons addressing city council during public comment, hearing, or testimonies shall provide their first and last names and the city ward in which they reside or, if not from Aberdeen, then the city or area in which they reside. The exception shall be city employees who address council in their official capacity who shall identify themselves by first and last name and city title.

(Ord. 6651 § 1, Amended, 09/11/2019. Prior code § 1.14.020)