Editorial of December 19, 2024

Officials, Public Need a Refresher on Meeting Decorum

First and foremost, hats off to Otsego County, the City of Oneonta, the Village of Cooperstown and the Town of Hartwick. From what we can glean, these are the only Otsego County municipal entities that currently livestream and record meetings and make them available to the public for viewing online. We encourage all of Otsego County’s villages and towns to follow their lead.

That being said, while sitting in on some of these meetings, or watching them online afterward, we have noticed that some folks—both municipal officials and members of the public—could use a refresher course on meeting etiquette.

According to Robert’s Rules of Order, “parliamentary procedure is a set of rules for conducting orderly meetings that accomplish goals fairly.” The benefits of parliamentary procedure include the following: justice and courtesy for all; maintenance of order; consideration of one item at a time; all sides get heard; ability for each [board] member to provide input; majority rule; and protection of the rights of all members, including the minority.