TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — Pima County Supervisors have developed a reputation for very long meetings that begin at 9am and run deep into late afternoon. Now they’ve decided to add more meetings —but different meetings—to try to study up on the issues they vote on, and maybe have shorter meetings overall.
Supervisor decisions can have a lot of impact on anyone who lives in Pima County. Meetings can be long, complicated and contentious as Supervisors hash out issues.
Now they’ve decided to hash out the issues ahead of time in the sort of study session Tucson City Council and many other governments use. They’d still vote on the issues in their regular session.
Incoming Board Chair Jennifer Allen says study sessions could make the regular sessions more efficient.
“So that the meeting agenda for the regular meeting then becomes much more focused on the decision making items, as opposed to the discussion items, which move to the study session. So my hope is that that gets us through the agenda quicker.”
Pima Supervisors have been meeting at 9am, the first and third Tuesdays of the month.
Starting in May they’ll meet the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month with the Study Session at 1Pm and the regular session starting at 5pm. The study session would only be on the first meeting day of the month.
Waiting until May is to give time for staff adjustments and to give the public time to adjust.
Night meetings could make it easier for the public to attend. Supervisors like Andres Cano understand that adds potential for meetings to run late into the night.
“We may confront difficult moments where the public this room is going to be packed the way we've seen over the last year, and I am not going to limit public comment. I am not going to cut off public debate. A part of making this accessible is sitting here doing our due diligence and listening part of so, I mean, I don't know supervisor, Christie, I don't want to be here at 10 o'clock either. But if our work requires that, that is what is expected.”
Supervisor Steve Christy said, “I agree with you that I have no problem listening to the public talk and call to the public, but I do have a problem with, is how my colleagues go on and on and on.”
