As most local governments in Santa Barbara County continue to block in-person attendance to their meetings, this isn’t the case in Lompoc.
On March 12, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order that allows local and state governments to hold public meetings via conference calls and live video. Following this, local city councils and the county Board of Supervisors shifted to only accepting public comment over the phone or through email. While Lompoc city officials have opened up these options, residents can also still attend meetings in person.
At the end of the Lompoc City Council’s meeting on April 7, Mayor Jenelle Osborne tried to add an emergency item to the agenda to discuss potential changes to future meetings, such as closing the doors to the public, but her motion failed in a 3-2 vote. Councilmembers Jim Mosby, Victor Vega, and Dirk Starbuck voted against adding the item to the agenda, while Councilmember Gilda Cordova supported the mayor’s effort.
Osborne told the Sun that she tried adding the item to the agenda so that the city is more in line with how other local governments are operating. She said preventing in-person attendance at council meetings would also show the public that the council is taking Newsom’s stay-at-home order seriously.
“When you see everyone else encouraging social distancing, it’s frustrating to not follow that model, and model to the public how best to do [social distancing],” Osborne told the Sun.
In response to the motion, Mosby questioned whether it was the appropriate time to bring up an emergency item as laid out in the council handbook. According to this handbook, “the council’s discussion of whether to add an item to the posted agenda shall occur immediately after the Pledge of Allegiance.”
Mosby told the Sun that he’s open to having the discussion about changing the structure of future meetings, but that it has to take place the proper way. He said that by adding an item to the agenda earlier in the meeting, it allows the public time to weigh in on the discussion.
“Even during an emergency I think we should follow proper protocol,” Mosby said. “And if you start unwinding it, that’s a slippery slope.”
Osborne acknowledges that she brought up the item at the wrong point in the meeting, but said she thinks the topic is serious enough to warrant a discussion or direction to City Manager Jim Throop anyway. She said she’s exploring how to bring up the item again.
“I’ll continue to bring it up and have a discussion about how do we model the behavior we’re asking the public to do?” Osborne said.
The council’s next meeting is scheduled for April 21.
This article appears in Apr 16-23, 2020.