Public Participation in State Board of Education Meetings

1. The State Board of Education shall, at its regular monthly business meeting, accept comments from any interested person on subjects related to the board's responsibilities.

2. The board shall not accept comments on specific adjudications that are governed by the Administrative Orders and Procedures Act (IC 4-21.5) or by other statutory procedures that limit public participation. Persons who wish to participate in these proceedings may obtain procedural information from the board office.

3. A person who desires to speak to the board must register at the board meeting room on the day of the meeting. Registration sheets shall customarily be available at least thirty (30) minutes prior to the start of the board meeting, and registration shall close five (5) minutes before the start of the meeting. Required registration information shall include the name and address of the person providing comments; the name of the organization, if any, that the person represents; and the topic to be discussed.

4. Public comments are subject to the following rules:

a. Statements are limited to five (5) minutes in length.

b. No person may speak more than once on the same topic.

c. Comments shall be directed to the board, not to an individual board member, and questions will not be entertained.

d. Statements shall not be abusive or argumentative, and persons making statements shall not debate statements made by other persons.

5. The board chair shall enforce these rules and may, subject to appeal to the board, take actions necessary to maintain order at the board meeting. Such actions may include, but are not limited to:

a. interrupting a person making a statement if the statement is too lengthy, unduly repetitive or otherwise violates these rules; and

b. limiting the total amount of time devoted to public statements based on the number of persons wishing to make statements and the length of the board's agenda.

Adopted: February 8, 1996