6 EDCAL November 19, 2018
Court ruling states boards can limit off-topic, over time limit, public comments
The following article was written by attor-
neys Harold Frieman and Jordan Fong of the
law firm Lozano Smith.
A California appellate court recently
reaffirmed the limitations a governing board
of a public entity can impose on public com-
ments during a board meeting (Ribakoff v.
City of Long Beach).
Background
As was his frequent practice, Joe
Ribakoff attended a Long Beach Public
Transportation Company (LBTC) board
meeting as an interested citizen. LBTC’s
lone shareholder is the City of Long
Beach, and LBTC operates as a public
entity. During the public comment period,
Ribakoff spoke for the three minutes that
an LBTC board ordinance grants members
of the public to address the board. When
Ribakoff attempted to speak a second time,
after the close of public comment, he was
denied the opportunity to speak further and
his microphone was cut off. An LBTC rep-
resentative testified that Ribakoff became
argumentative and appeared to approach
the dais where the board was seated. A
police officer was summoned and told
Ribakoff that if he disrupted the meeting
again, he would be arrested for violation of
a city ordinance prohibiting disturbance or
COLÓN
Continued from page 2
PLI allowed me to see the possibilities of
being a school leader and the impact I can
have in the life of students. I began to see
the school as my new classroom. In 2003,
I started my career as a site administrator.”
But through it all, students have remained
at the heart of what Colón does.
interruption of a board meeting.
Ribakoff sued the board, arguing that
the board meeting disturbance ordinance
violates the First Amendment, and that its
three-minute speaking limit violates the
Brown Act and the First Amendment.
To support his argument that the ordi-
nance’s prohibition on disturbance or inter-
ruption of a board meeting violated the First
Amendment, Ribakoff pointed to precedent
that says an ordinance is unconstitutional if
interpreted to allow an arrest based on the
content of the disruption. However, that
precedent also found that an ordinance
is constitutional if it is construed to be a
content-neutral “time and place” restriction.
The court construed the challenged ordi-
nance to be a legitimate “time and place”
regulation that only penalized speech based
on whether it was disrupting the meeting,
not on what was being said.
The Brown Act permits a public agency’s
governing board to adopt reasonable time
limitations to ensure adequate opportu-
nity for public comment, but prohibits the
board from censoring public criticism of it.
Ribakoff argued that the three minute limit
is not reasonable because the board used it
for a purpose other than time limitation – it
allowed the board to censor his criticism.
However, the court found no evidence to support this argument. The board did not
stop Ribakoff from speaking during his
initial three minutes, despite his critical
statements. It was only when he attempted
to speak after his three minutes had expired
that he was restrained from speaking fur-
ther.
Ribakoff also claimed that the time
limit is unreasonable because the three-
minute limitation applies only to public
comment and not the board or its invited
speakers. The court disagreed, pointing out
the difference in purpose between public
comments and board or invited presenter
speech. When the board or its invited
presenters speak, it is for the benefit of the
public. The board regulates the number and
length of these presentations, and ensures
that they do not take more time than neces-
sary. Conversely, public comment is poten-
tially unlimited depending on how many
members of the public are at the meeting,
so a reasonable time limitation is justified.
The court recognized that board meet-
ings are open to the public, yet are still
governmental processes with an agenda and
a purpose. Therefore, limitations for the
purposes of keeping the board meeting on
schedule and on topic are justified. “What inspires me most is the positive
impact I can have in the life of our stu-
dents,” he said. “I know that every decision,
conversation and commitment can make a
difference. Our students expect us to have
their best interest in mind.”
In his current position with Anaheim
Union, Colón proudly points to the com-
mitment the district has made to ensure all
students have the opportunity to be success-
ful in college, career and life through their Anaheim Union Educational Pledge.
“Our Pledge ensures each student is
given the knowledge, skills and resources to
control their own destiny,” Colón said. “The
Pledge has leveled the
playing field for our “ACSA has
English learners, stu-
given me a
dents with disabilities,
low-income and first broad perspec-
generation students tive of public
to access career path-
ways, which includes education...I am
attending the most able to learn
prestigious universi-
ties. In the future, we from best prac-
hope to be a nation- tices and get
al model for urban
school districts. Our current informa-
Pledge can and will tion.”
narrow the achieve- Manuel Colón,
ment and opportunity Chief Academic
gap and will demon-
Officer
strate how, given the
right support, any stu-
dent can be successful.”
Colón credits his 13-year involvement
in ACSA for providing career development
along the way.
“ACSA has given me a broad perspec- tive of public education,” he said. “Through
(EdCal) and emails, I am able to see what
is happening statewide. I am able to learn
from best practices and get current infor-
mation.
“ACSA has also created a professional
network that mentors, inspires, and chal-
lenges all administrators to be their best for
the benefit of students. In my current posi-
tion, ACSA has allowed me to mentor new
and aspiring administrators. I have been
a guest speaker at ACSA events and cur-
rent coach new administrators as an ACSA
Certified Coach.”
Colón is invigorated by the ACSA
Leadership Summit theme of Empowering
Innovative Leadership.
“This is a great theme,” he said. “We live
in a constantly changing world. Leadership,
especially school leadership, needs to
change and adjust to current and future
trends. Innovative leadership is what we
practice and live by in the Anaheim Union
High School District. As school leaders, we
need to see the possibilities and ensure our
students have access to and experience an
innovative culture.”
ACSA salutes Manuel Colón, recipient
of the 2018 Valuing Diversity Award.
COACHING participants in ACSA’s Clear Administrative
Services Credential program:
“My ACSA coach is an amazing mentor.
She is always available to support me with
new ideas, provide feedback, listen as needed,
and always encouraged me to continue working
toward my goals. As a mentor, she guides me in
reflecting on the work that I am doing in my
current position and how I can take my practice
to the next level through the lens of the admin-
istrative standards. I am a better administra-
tive today because of my ACSA coach.”
– Karina Gerger, assistant principal, Mira
Costa High School, Manhattan Beach Unified
School District
Paid Advertisement
adopt rules that limit public comment based
on the content of the comment. But it is not
a free speech violation to limit comments to
the topic at hand.
• Cities or other entities with police
power may adopt ordinances that autho-
rize penalties for members of the public
when their behavior-and not the content
of their expression-impairs the conduct of
the meeting.
• Boards may adopt reasonable time
limitations on public comment.
• Boards may have different time limi-
tations for public comment versus board
members or invited speakers.
Find out more about Lozano Smith at
www.lozanosmith.com.
www.acsa.org
Takeaways
• Boards are generally not permitted to
Continued from page 1
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Mojave Unified School District
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