Current rules lifted for new rules talk at Burnet County commissioners meeting
Burnet County Tourism Director Blair Manning at the podium during the Burnet County Commissioners Court meeting Oct. 10. The rules of decorum for public speaking at the podium and behavior in the courtroom became a contentious issue at the end of the morning meeting but did not involve Manning’s turn at the mic. Staff photo by Suzanne Freeman
A proposed Rules of Conduct and Decorum for Burnet County Commissioners Court meetings received vigorous public debate — outside of the current rules — on Tuesday, Oct. 10. No vote was taken, but the rules as proposed by County Judge James Oakley will go back to the drawing board with a new version to be discussed and possibly approved at the next meeting on Oct. 24.
Changes include increasing the amount of time to speak to three minutes from two as well as outlining what constitutes inappropriate behavior, dress, or language that could get a person evicted from the meeting.
“The intent is to have a set of rules to fall back on should we need to fall back on them,” Oakley said.
That need for a clear-cut policy became painfully apparent at a meeting on Sept. 12 when a Burnet resident came to the podium and told a story about going to the Burnet police to complain about how he was treated by Oakley on election night in May. He said he told an officer that Oakley got physical with him, and, because of that, he was going to start carrying a gun. If Oakley “gets in my no-fly zone, I’m gonna kill him,” he said, both to the officer that night and at the Sept. 12 meeting. The complaint to police related to an “aggressive handshake” and was investigated and unsubstantiated, Oakley told the DailyTrib.com after the meeting.
During the Oct. 10 meeting, current rules were set aside to allow everyone to have their say on the newly proposed rules. Oakley allowed members of the public to take the microphone and speak from the floor at will during discussion of the decorum item, a privilege at least three people said the public should have for each agenda item at every meeting.
“We would like to speak on agenda items,” said Burnet County resident Patricia Cope. “You are not giving us time to read these rules. We didn’t see this handout ’til just now. There’s no chance to discuss.”
Precinct 2 Commissioner Damon Beierle agreed and suggested the court include attachments with the posted agendas so people have a chance to read about items before a meeting.
“Each item should allow for public comment,” he said to muted applause from a handful of people in the courtroom.
Oakley pointed out that the policy he was recommending was adapted from the Texas Association of Counties’ 2022 Meetings Procedure and Decorum and mirrors what the Llano County Commissioners Court uses. TAC advises against allowing public comment for each agenda item.
“Let’s be real clear about something,” Oakley said. “How I was raised and how I operate, when there’s a problem, let’s talk through it. That has been abused here to where the decorum is lost as to who is actually running the meeting. It gets into an arguing back and forth.”
He likened Commissioners Court to a court of law. Instead of a docket of cases, commissioners have an agenda.
“Each item on here, instead of being decided by a judge or a jury, it’s decided on by the court,” he said.
Violation of the rules of decorum could result in cancellation of a speaker’s remaining time, removal from the Commissioners Court, or legal action up to and including prosecution. Refusal to abide by court rules by continuing to disrupt a meeting could result in Class B misdemeanor charges filed under Chapter 42.05 in the Texas Penal Code.
The court cannot prohibit public criticism of the governing body, but “profanity or threatening language, racial or ethnic slurs directed towards the commissioners or anyone in the court’s presence will not be tolerated,” reads the proposed rules.
Although listed at No. 4 on the agenda, the rules were not discussed until the end of the meeting as Oakley said he was waiting for Precinct 1 Commissioner Jim Luther to show up. Luther, who was reported to be out dealing with a family issue, never showed.
“It sounds like we are just going ’round and ’round here,” said Precinct 3 Commissioner Billy Wall after about 20 minutes of back-and-forth between commissioners and several members of the audience at the end of the meeting. “Any problem with going to the next meeting?”
“I have no problem with that,” Oakley said.
The next meeting of the Burnet County Commissioners Court is at 9 a.m. Oct. 24 in the second-floor courtroom in the county courthouse, 220 S. Pierce St. in Burnet. The agenda will be posted online sometime during the day Friday, Oct. 20.
CLARIFICATION: A sentence was added to the fourth paragraph of the original version of this story to more clearly explain what happened in the “physical” incident between the Burnet constituent and Oakley and that the police investigated it, but found no grounds for charges.
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Guess who said the following after he got his bottom spanked by the Texas Ethics boys and girls in Austin?
“I don’t believe that the judicial conduct commission should have the ability to take away my constitutional right of free speech or anyone’s for that matter.”