Bullet point submissions, advanced agendas: Regina councillor proposes potential procedure changes

After two marathon meetings, a Regina city councillor wants to change the processesfor people wanting to talk to council and how far in advance people will know about agenda items.

Councillor Lori Brescianiproposing a motion for two main changes to council procedures:

• People would have to provide a written submission outlining their specific concerns or comments.
• Agendas for committees or council wouldhave to be posted two Fridays before the meeting happens.

If approved, her changes would come into effect for all meetings after June 1, including the July 14 meeting on a potential conversion therapy ban bylaw. The committee and council meeting on so called conversion therapy with dozens of delegations spurred calls for changes.

Bresciani originally proposed the changes on May 12. However, she tabled her motion as council has a meeting dedicated to it this upcoming weekend. Bresciani said her motionis about transparency and increased community engagement.

"It's vitally important that we actually provide the notice to the general public when things are coming to council," Bresciani said."We really, truly want the general public to be engaged and what council is doing and we also want to hear from them."

Currently the agendas are posted on Fridays then people have until Monday at 1 p.m. CST to register as a delegation. Bresciani said that the short timeframe is unfair. The timeframe was also called into question at the conversion therapy meetings.

In December, Regina city council voted to get rid of written submissions in the name of accessibility. However, Bresciani said hers would be a minor change where they would simply do bullet points of their concerns or main points. The city clerk could also vet for off-topic concerns or misinformation.

"It's important because it becomes public record," she said. "It gives me just another level of understanding if I can have some time to consume it, understand it, rather than just speaking and then all of a sudden I have to think of questions on the fly."

While other councillors have called for people to disclose their locationin the wake of the conversion therapy meetings, Bresciani said that could easily be discussed and added at a future meeting.