A week after a Lenoir City man criticized local
government on the handling of his open records
request and recent changes to the county’s
procedures on monthly meetings, Loudon County
commissioners addressed concerns from residents
on the public comment policy.
Per the board’s policy, commission may, at the
discretion of Chairman Steve Harrelson, limit
the total public comment time allocation to 30
minutes at monthly meetings.
Earlier this year, commission removed a
public comment period at the end of business
meetings and kept a time for residents to speak
at the beginning of each meeting.
“Other counties have issues, and their
approach isn’t to silence the public like
Loudon County,” Lenoir City resident Richard
Truitt said during a workshop Monday. “... I
saw 10 commissioners vote against the
public’s right to speak. I hope you don’t
say later you’re for open government.”
Commission Vice Chairwoman Earlena Maples
said she disagreed with Truitt’s assessment.
“You had a right to speak; we just listened
to you, and we listen to you” at most
commission meetings, Maples said.
In a back-and forth, Truitt said commission
decreased the public’s speaking time by
removing the comment period at the end of
meetings.
“You cut the right of the public to speak in
half and put time restrictions on the right
to speak; that’s what ya’ll did. You can’t
change that,” Truitt said.
“We didn’t stop people from talking,” Maples
said. “That’s what you just said.”
Commissioner Van Shaver said the board was
under no obligation to allow public comments
at meetings. “There is no right to speak at
one of these meetings. Let’s make it real
clear,” Shaver said. “We don’t have to
permit any public comment. I’m from that
side of the fence. I’m a huge fan of citizen
activism. But why, how do you — Mr.
(Richard) Anklin just had 9:22 (minutes).
You just had 4:20. Every meeting everybody
says anything they want to say.”
Shaver said commission will continue to
allow those who want to speak the ability to
do so, noting that he failed to understand
the “constant drumbeat” that commission
isn’t receptive to hearing from residents.
Lenoir City resident Pat Hunter asked
commission why the board added the 30-minute
limit on public comments.
Commissioner Bill Satterfield said the
30-minute window provides the board with a
fail-safe in the event a large group
attempts to conduct a kind of “filibuster”
to prevent the county from conducting
business on a particular issue.
“If there was no cutoff, if there was no
limit of time they could come (to a meeting)
with the intention of not letting the
commission come to a vote or complete its
business by allowing them to speak as long,
as often or as many of them as wanted to,”
Satterfield said.
Harrelson said he had no intention of
limiting the public comment period.
“Since I’ve been chairman, since I’ve been
on commission, anybody that’s wanted to
speak has not been shut off by the former
chairman or myself,” Harrelson said. “It’s
not going to happen.”
Commissioner Henry Cullen said no resident
has been “gaveled … down” or silenced while
he has served on the board the past year.
“Last month’s workshop, we had a one-hour
comment period and a 50-minute meeting,”
Shaver said. “Tell me we’re not letting the
public comment. How can you say that?”