How to Share Your Voice at City Council Meetings

(Photo: City of Laurel)

The “public hearing” component of council meetings is the most important, in my opinion, because it’s the opportunity for you to share your voice. But unless you’ve done it before, it can be a big question mark of how to actually accomplish it.

There’s no need to be nervous, however. Here are tips I like to share with folks to help get them comfortable:

The meeting cycle for the City Council typically follows the monthly pattern of (a) 1st Wednesday, a work session, (b) 2nd Monday, a regular council meeting, and (c) 4th Monday, a second regular council meeting. Occasionally there are adjustments for holidays or other situations, but you can check the city’s meeting page to confirm.

I mention the monthly pattern, because “public hearing” components do not usually occur in the work session, but do occur at the “regular” council meetings on the 2nd and 4th Mondays.

“Public hearing” components usually take one of two forms: Either (a) you sign up to speak about a specific agenda item when it’s arrived at, or (b) you sign up to speak during the “General Public Hearing” agenda item, where you can share on any topic you’d like even if it’s not on that night’s agenda.

Since the council meetings that take place on the 2nd Monday of the month are typically held via Zoom, signing up to speak requires that you email the Clerk to the Council no later than 2 pm on the day of the meeting (“clerk@laurel.md.us”).

And since the council meetings that take place on the 4th Monday of each month are typically held in-person at the Municipal Center (8103 Sandy Spring Road), you can simply add your name to the physical sign-up list just inside the council chamber doors when you arrive. Often as the Council President comes to various agenda items, they’ll also confirm if anyone present wants to speak, though this is not required.

Once it comes your turn, you’ll have 3 minutes to share your thoughts. At first glance, that can seem a short time, but in practice it’s usually very adequate to make the points you want to mention. Of course, having a few bulleted notes for yourself will help you avoid forgetting something in the moment.

Pro tip: With a change to council rules last fall, if five or more attendees are present for the same topic and wanted to join together as a group, they can designate a spokesperson who will then have 5 minutes instead of the normal 3 minutes.

I hope the above is helpful in demystifying how to share your voice at council meetings, and please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions. One of my deepest satisfactions comes from helping equip people to participate in the political process, as it is ultimately a treasure for all of us to hold dear.

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Adrian Simmons, a life-long Laurel resident, represents Ward 1 on the Laurel City Council.