Inside Quincy’s Proposed City Hall Decorum Rules: No Jeering, Personal Attacks or Disruptive Conduct
QUINCY, Ill. Quincy residents now have a clearer look at the proposed rules intended to bring more civility and order to City Council meetings, with the full resolution outlining expectations not only for members of the public, but also elected officials and city staff.
The resolution, titled “A Resolution Establishing Standards of Civility, Respect, and Decorum in City Council Chambers,” states that the City Council is committed to conducting public business in an open, transparent and dignified environment. It also recognizes the public’s protected right to address the council, subject to reasonable rules governing the time, place and manner of public comment.
If approved, the rules would establish separate standards for council members and staff, members of the public attending meetings and those speaking during public comment.
For aldermen and city staff, remarks during council meetings would be expected to focus on the issues being discussed rather than personal attacks, vulgar language or gestures, or questioning another member’s motives.
Members would also be expected to allow speakers to finish without interruption, cross-talk or discourteous behavior. Anyone called to order by the mayor or presiding officer would be required to stop speaking while a ruling is made on the point of order.
The proposed rules also directly address behavior from the gallery.
Members of the public attending meetings would be required to remain seated and quiet and refrain from cheering, jeering or booing. The resolution would also prohibit disruptive signs that interfere with another person’s ability to see or hear the proceedings.
Public speakers would be required to state their name, remain within the designated speaking time and refrain from slanderous, profane or vulgar language or gestures, as well as excessively disruptive behavior.
Electronic devices would also have to be silenced or placed on vibrate before entering the council chambers.
The resolution also spells out how the rules could be enforced.
The mayor would be authorized to issue a warning to any individual or council member who violates the standards. If disruptive behavior continues after a warning, the mayor could order the conduct to stop, recess the meeting or have the individual removed from the chambers by designated law enforcement.
The proposal comes as conduct during City Council meetings has increasingly become part of the public conversation in Quincy, with recent meetings at times featuring heated exchanges, interruptions and vocal reactions from those attending.
The language of the resolution makes clear, however, that the standards are not aimed solely at members of the public. Council members and city staff would also be subject to expectations involving civil discourse, listening and compliance with the presiding officer.
The document has not yet been finalized as an adopted resolution. The copy obtained by Quincy Current still contains blank spaces for the date of passage and the number of aye, nay, absent and abstaining votes.
If approved, the resolution would establish a formal framework for what city leaders describe as civility, respect and decorum inside Quincy City Hall, while maintaining the public’s ability to address its elected representatives.
For residents who regularly attend council meetings, the proposed rules could make one thing particularly clear going forward: disagreement would remain welcome, but disruption would not.
