Public Participation at Council Meetings

1. General Communication (12 p.m.)

Time is set aside at noon at each council meeting for a maximum of 10 individuals to address the council on topics of their choice.

A person who intends to speak at this time must register in advance with the City Clerk’s Office. Registration must include the meeting date, name, contact information, and location (either in Council Chambers at the meeting or off-site at a participating library).

Contact the Office of the City Clerk by phone (512-974-2210) or online.

The registration period for a given meeting begins at 9 a.m., 21 days prior to the meeting, and ends at 4:30 p.m., 14 days prior to the meeting. See the 2023 General Public Communication Schedule for registration dates and times. 

A person may not speak at general communication more often than once out of every three regularly scheduled council meetings.

2. Speaking on Specific Agenda Items (10 a.m. or 2 p.m.)

Public comment on agenda items will be allowed both in-person and remotely (by telephone). Speakers may only register to speak on an item once, either in-person or remotely.

Speakers will be taken in blocks at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. For all items on the consent agenda, Public Hearings and all non-consent items other than Zoning, public comment will be taken at 10 a.m. For all zoning items, public comment will be taken at 2 p.m. Additional time slots may be added as needed or at the request of Council.

If speaking remotely via cell phone, please ensure you are in a location with good reception. If you are using a wireless connection, please note your call may drop depending on the service.

Requests for language translation/interpretation services or sign language services must be emailed to City.Clerk@austintexas.gov 48 hours in advance of the meeting. 

Online Registration (for in-person and remote speakers):

Speakers must submit the online registration form in advance. When sign-up is available, open forms can be found at the Council Meeting Information Center page.

For regular council meetings, the online registration period will open at 10 a.m. on the Monday before the meeting and close at noon the day before the meeting. Special-called meetings may have a different sign-up schedule. 

• The online registration form must be submitted by noon the day before the meeting. Advanced registration allows staff to manage the number of speakers in chambers to accommodate social distancing requirements.

• Remote registration is not available after the online form closes.

• Once the registration form is received, residents speaking remotely will receive either an email or phone call following the close of the registration period providing instructions on speaking at the meeting.

• Handouts or other documents that speakers wish to have provided to Council must be emailed to City.Clerk@austintexas.gov by noon the day before the meeting. This information will be provided to Mayor and Council in advance of the meeting.

• Currently, speakers may not donate time to other speakers.

• Currently, speakers may not pull consent items from the consent agenda.

• The allotted time provided to speakers may vary as determined by Council.

In-Person Registration at City Hall (for in-person speakers only):

• In lieu of online registration, in-person speakers can register to speak using the City Hall atrium kiosks beginning shortly after noon the day before the meeting until 45 minutes before the meeting is scheduled to begin. 

• Remote speaker sign-up is not available via the City Hall atrium kiosks.

• Please visit the Office of the City Clerk if assistance is required when using the kiosks.

Participation at Work Sessions

Except as provided in the City Code, citizen participation is not permitted at a work session meeting.