DeKalbians promised the policy of “open government” by their recently elected mayor may soon have limited opportunities to express views on their local government.

DeKalb Mayor Frank Van Buer is creating a task force that will attempt to scale back the amount of time spent on policy making. Cutting time may result in cutting back on audience participation at council meetings.

“The idea of limiting public opportunity of expression cannot fly,” 6th Ward Alderman Dave Baker said.

While these propositions are not “on the fast track” to passing, said Assistant City Manager Linda Wiggins, one of the preliminary proposals of the plan commission would formally place a time limit on public expression at council meetings.

The previous administration applied a three-minute limit on each individual addressing the council, but the rule was loosely followed, Wiggins said.

According to Baker, such rules are already being applied at council meetings while residents are discussing pertinent issues.

“You don’t want to limit public input,” Wiggins said. “But if there is no time limit, people will go on and on.”

Baker said though individuals may go on and on, there is value to the repetition; “It may seem redundant, but it is vital to the process.”

Council members are rarely present at planning meetings and therefore tend to miss out on public expression, Baker said. If a number of residents come to express their views on an issue but only a few are allowed to speak before the meeting moves on, the council will only get to read a meeting synopsis about the few who were present instead of the many who were present to show their concern.

The task force may also propose a time limit on the actual review of a proposed motion.

Current procedure first sends the proposal to the city council where it reviews the issue. The issue is discussed and then is “laid over” for two weeks until the next council meeting. During those two weeks, residents have the opportunity to bring up potential problems with the proposal and can discuss them at the following meeting.

The task force’s proposal would allow the council to vote and pass decision on issues instantly, without a second reading.

“Most of these changes are positive,” Wiggins said. “The second hearing issue is one of the most contentious. None of these rules will be instituted if it limits the publics ability to speak.”