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Protocol for Contingency Requests from Nonprofit Entities <br /> <br />The council acknowledged that not all requests were from nonprofits, and it was noted that in the past, the <br />council allocated $60,000 for such requests, which had been useful at times in leveraging other money. The <br />council briefly discussed how the process worked in the past several years and the potential for establishing <br />a grant fund with council-established criteria for allocation. There was general agreement that a process <br />was needed. The council agreed to refer the issue and the suggestion for establishment of a grant fund to the <br />Budget Committee for further discussion, which would also allow for public input. <br /> <br />Scheduling Ongoing Issues Where no Action is Necessary <br /> <br />Mayor Piercy sought direction regarding non-action items, asking when the council wanted to hear progress <br />reports. Councilors discussed the current approach toward updates, which was to schedule a council work <br />session or for staff to provide a memorandum. Councilors indicated interest in avoiding unnecessary work <br />sessions, although Ms. Solomon suggested that informational work sessions, such as the one held on the <br />Rivers to Ridges project, could be very useful. <br /> <br />After a discussion of various approaches, including additional memorandum updates, City Manager monthly <br />reports, written summaries, adding committee reports to each agenda, and open work session updates to <br />provide an opportunity for council reaction and feedback, the council agreed to defer resolution of the issue <br />to the City Manager and Mayor Piercy because it would likely affect the agenda-setting process. <br /> <br />Mayor Piercy called for a brief meeting break. <br /> <br />Policy Concerning Inviting People to Speak at Council Meetings <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly spoke to the issue, noting that on occasion it was suggested that a person in the audience speak to <br />the council to clarify a point. He suggested that the council needed to establish a policy addressing the issue <br />because it did not behaved consistently in the past when such situations arose. He added that he was unsure <br />the council could do anything but prohibit the practice. <br /> <br />Councilors were split on the subject, with Mr. Kelly and Ms. Taylor preferring an outright prohibition on <br />such speakers because of other opportunities that existed outside of work sessions to speak, while other <br />councilors, including Mr. Solomon, Mr. Pryor, and Mr. Poling, were not prepared to eliminate the potential <br />if councilors were seeking clarification on a point and the response could help them make a decision. Ms. <br />Solomon did not think the issue arose frequently enough to be a problem. Ms. Ortiz indicated she also <br />wanted to be able to ask people questions at work sessions. <br /> <br />Ms. Bettman expressed concern about equity of opportunity and the potential loss of control of meetings. <br />She pointed out that those invited to speak would only represent their own point of view. She thought staff <br />generally had responses to councilors’ questions. She also agreed people had other opportunities outside <br />work sessions for input. <br /> <br />Mr. Papé suggested leaving the matter to the discretion of the Mayor, although he did not want such <br />speaking opportunities to become venues for lobbying. Mr. Kelly pointed out that people could provide <br />information to the council in advance of a meeting. He advocated for a policy to guide the Mayor. <br /> <br />Mr. Poling supported deferring the issue to the Mayor. <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 21, 2005 Page 2 <br /> Process Session <br /> <br />