Public Hearing and Comments

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During the regular Board meetings, held on the second and fourth Tuesday of every month, the public is allowed to speak during both the Public Hearing and Comments from the Public sections. Each section has its own published guidelines on public testimony.

*Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, All Board of Commissioner Meetings are being held remotely until further notice.You may view the broadcasting of all Commissioner Meetings via DCTV*

To submit a public comment for remote hearing: 

Public Comment may be submitted by sending an email no longer than one page to PublicComment@dekalbcountyga.gov which must be received between 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. on the day of the meeting. Only those emails received during the allotted time may be read aloud and broadcast. Emails received outside of the allotted time will be included in the Public Comments record for the next meeting after the receipt of those emails. The body of your email must include your first and last name, followed by your address. By submitting an email at any time for public comment, you agree to have your name, address, and email broadcast on the teleconference (Zoom) and entered in the record/minutes. Abusive, profane or derogatory language will not be permitted. The Public Comment segment will not exceed 30 minutes and individual emails will be read by the Clerk for no more than 3 minutes each. The County reserves the right, at the County’s sole discretion, to (1) add your email to the record/minutes without reading any of it into the broadcast or (2) add your email to the record/minutes and read all or a portion of your email into the broadcast.

10:00 A.M. PUBLIC HEARING

The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners will hold a Public Hearing during its Regular Business meeting on the second and fourth Tuesday of every month at 10:00 a.m. Until further notice this meeting will be conducted via teleconference (Zoom). Simultaneous public access to the meeting will be available (1) via live stream on DCTV’s webpage, and (2) DCTVChannel23.TV. The public is invited to watch the broadcast on DCTV's UStream link , or join the meeting using the Zoom link (https://dekalbcountyga.zoom.us/j/7753778046), or by telephone (602-333-0032 or 888-270-9936, conference code: 217687). For those joining the meeting by telephone, please be aware that your phone number may be displayed to the public viewing or participating in the online meeting. The Board will provide 15 minutes of time for citizens to speak in favor of an agenda item, and 15 minutes for citizens to speak in opposition. Citizens who attend the meeting via the Zoom link above may join the public comment queue by raising their hand in the Zoom application, while citizens who attend the meeting via telephone may join the comment queue by pressing # followed by 2. There will be no comment cards, so when you are called upon, please state your name and address for the record. Also, please be conscious of speaking time so that everyone has an opportunity to provide input in the allotted time. Citizens may also email documents for inclusion into the official record by submitting such materials by 9:00 a.m. on the date of the public hearing to PublicHearing@dekalbcountyga.gov.

Public Hearing
During the Public Hearing section, citizens may speak for or against an item that is considered by law to be a zoning ordinance and each side will have ten minutes to present its case.

Citizens may also speak for or against an item that is placed on the public hearing agenda but is not a zoning ordinance. In that case, each side will have five minutes to present its case. In the event that there is more than one speaker per side, speakers must divide their time in order to complete their full presentation within the ten-minute time allotment, or the five-minute time allotment. When the buzzer sounds to indicate that time has expired, the speaker will be expected to immediately cease speaking and to leave the podium area. Prior to speaking, please complete a speaker card and present it when approaching the podium.

If you have any documents for the Commissioners, please provide 10 copies when approaching the podium. Seven copies are for the Commissioners and the remaining copies are for the planning director, the county attorney, and the clerk. Applicants or citizens speaking in favor of an item shall speak first and applicants in zoning ordinance cases shall have the right to reserve time for rebuttal. Opponents of a zoning ordinance item shall have no right of rebuttal.

Once the citizens have finished speaking, staff shall make a recommendation for action to the commission. At this point, citizens are no longer allowed to speak unless called to the podium by an individual commissioner to answer questions or provide information.

When speaking, always talk directly into the microphone and begin by stating your name, address, and the name of any organization you represent. Any abusive, profane, or derogatory language will not be permitted. Holding up signs, clapping, and yelling to show support for or opposition to a speaker will not be permitted, but a show of hands or quietly standing will be permitted to show support for or opposition to a speaker's position.

Comments from the Public
The Public Comments section of the meetings is reserved exclusively for comments from the public, and not for immediate reply.

Statements made during the Public Comments portion do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Board or the Administration of DeKalb County Government. The purpose of public comment is to allow the public to voice county-related requests, concerns, or opinions during the public comment portion of the Commission meeting. Individual speakers will only have the opportunity for one public comment per meeting. Prior to speaking, each speaker must complete a speaker card and present it to the clerk before the beginning of the public comment portion of the meeting. The clerk will accept cards on a first-come, first-served basis.

Speakers who are residents of DeKalb County will be allowed to speak before residents of other counties are allowed to speak. Once the public comment portion of the meeting begins, speaker cards will no longer be accepted. Speakers will be allowed to speak for three minutes each and public comment will not exceed 30 minutes in length. When the buzzer sounds to indicate that time has expired, the speaker will be expected to immediately cease speaking and to yield the podium. Those who submitted speaker cards but did not speak because of the time allotment will be allowed to speak first at the next regularly scheduled commission meeting without regard to residence.

For more information about scheduling this opportunity, please speak with a member of the Clerk's staff. If you would like to fill out a written comment concerning county-related service complaints, this will help the governing authority to forward the complaints to the appropriate department for follow-up.

When speaking, always talk directly into the microphone and begin by stating your name, address, and the name of any organization you represent. Any abusive, profane, or derogatory language will not be permitted. Holding up signs, clapping, and yelling to show support for or opposition to a speaker will not be permitted, but a show of hands or quietly standing will be permitted to show support for or opposition to a speaker's position.