This article was republished with permission from WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
The Prince William Board of County Supervisors will not be making changes to public comment procedures anytime soon.
At Tuesday’s meeting, board Chair Ann Wheeler said discussion of potential changes is being abandoned for now.
She said the decision came after discussing the procedures with other supervisors and because the board “has so much else going on.”
Wheeler had proposed limiting public comment to one hour each in the afternoon and evening and limiting speakers to one public comment slot per month.
For public hearings, Wheeler recommended that once 45 people have signed up, the speaking limits are automatically reduced from three to two minutes per person and five to three minutes for organizations.
A review of board meetings by InsideNoVa found that between January 2021 and January 2023, the board has held 88 public comment sessions. They ranged from four minutes each on Oct. 5 and Oct. 12, 2021, to a long of 3 hours and 13 minutes on July 20, 2021.
In 2022, meetings regularly stretched into the morning past 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. In the fall, one meeting ended at 4:30 a.m. and another lasted until 9:47 a.m.
Wheeler did not indicate when or if the board would again consider changes to public comment.
