They Will Tell You Anything To Try and Hide From Accountability
Alief Board Policies BED (Legal) and BED (Local) labeled Board Meeting Public Participation DOES NOT state that it is prohibited for presenters to mention district employee names when voicing concerns or complaints.
ALIEF SCHOOL BOARD POLICY BED (Legal)
BOARD MEETINGS PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
United States Constitution:
A district shall take no action abridging the freedom of speech or the right of the people to petition the board for redress of grievances. U.S. Const. Amend. I, XIV
A board may confine its meetings to specified subject matter and may hold nonpublic sessions to transact business. When the board sits in public meetings to conduct public business and hear the views of citizens, it may not discriminate between speakers on the basis of the content of their speech or the message it conveys. Rosenberger v. Rector & Visitors of Univ. of Virginia, 515 U.S. 819, 828 (1995); City of Madison v. Wis. Emp. Rel. Comm’n, 429 U.S. 167, 176 (1976); Pickering v. Bd. of Educ., 391 U.S. 563, 568 (1968)
A board may create a limited public forum for the purpose of hearing comments from the public so long as:
1. The board does not discriminate against speech on the basis of viewpoint;
2. Any restrictions are reasonable in light of the purpose served by the forum; and
3. The board provides alternative paths for expressing categories of protected speech that are excluded from the forum.
Fairchild v. Liberty Indep. Sch. Dist., 597 F.3d 747 (5th Cir. 2010)
Texas Constitution:
Citizens shall have the right, in a peaceable manner, to assemble together for their common good and to apply to those invested with the powers of government for redress of grievances or other purposes, by petition, address, or remonstrance. Tex. Const. Art. I, Sec. 27
Public Comment:
As long as the requirements of the Open Meetings Act are satisfied and the right of citizens to apply to a board for redress of their grievances is not abridged, the board need not provide a public forum for every citizen wishing to express an opinion on a matter. Reasonable restraints on the number, length, and frequency of presentations are permissible. A board may limit the number of persons it will hear on a particular subject and the frequency with which they may appear, so long as the regulation does not abridge constitutionally guaranteed rights of freedom of speech and to petition, nor unfairly discriminate among views seeking expression. Atty. Gen. Op. H-188 (1973)
Alief School Board Policy BED (LOCAL)
Board Meeting Public Participation
Limit on Participation:
Audience participation at a Board meeting is limited to the public comment portion of the meeting designated for that purpose. At all other times during a Board meeting, the audience shall not enter into discussion or debate on matters being considered by the Board, unless requested by the presiding officer. The presiding officer may limit the length of patron presentations and the number of patrons addressing the same subject.
Public Comment:
At regular meetings the Board shall allot a limited amount of time to hear persons who desire to make comments to the Board. Persons who wish to participate in this portion of the meeting shall sign up with the presiding officer or designee before the meeting begins and shall indicate the topic about which they wish to speak. No presentation shall exceed five minutes.
Board’s Response:
Specific factual information or recitation of existing policy may be furnished in response to inquiries, but the Board shall not deliberate or decide regarding any subject that is not included on the agenda posted with notice of the meeting.
Complaints and Concerns:
The presiding officer or designee shall determine whether a person addressing the Board has attempted to solve a matter administratively through resolution channels established by policy. If not, the person shall be referred to the appropriate policy (see list below) to seek resolution:
Employee complaints: DGBA
Student or parent complaints: FNG
Public complaints: GF