Neal Franklin

With the start of a new year, Smith County Commissioners Court spent the first half of its special meeting on Friday reviewing decorum rules for public comment.

“We’re not up here against the public. We want to hear from you, but we must follow the rules when you’re participating,” Judge Neal Franklin said. “While the public is invited to attend all opening meetings of the Commissioners Court, participation is limited.”

Per the Rules and Procedure, Conduct and Decorum, the public may only observe unless a member(s) is requested to address the issue or a public participation form has been completed and submitted before the court.

Comments during meetings must pertain to agenda items. The individual(s) may comment before or during consideration of the item. However, the court may only discuss issues posted on the agenda.

Each member of the public is allowed three minutes to speak.

“That’s as many items as you want to cover, but you only have three minutes,” Franklin said.

Individuals are expected to maintain respectful behavior while speaking in front of the court. Attendees who do not comply with these guidelines will be asked to leave the meeting. If the individual persists with the disruption, they may be cited for Contempt of Court.

For example, Franklin said shouting out a social media platform, yelling at court members, or referring to them by their first names and disruptions from the audience are not permitted.

“The Smith County Commissioners Court is not a forum to publicly demean any group or individual,” Franklin said. “The Court will not allow a member or members of the public to insult the honesty and integrity of the court, as a body, or any member or members of the court, individually or collectively.”

Franklin said it’s his job to interpret whether the public comments are regarding an agenda item.

The discussion came after the court has seen an increased amount of public participation, including numerous instances where the speakers were not speaking about the agenda items.

In other business, the court approved facility use agreements for 38 polling locations for elections conducted in 2024 and received notice of election for the March 5 Joint Primary.

The commissioners approved an indigent defense contract with Ryan Sorrells for the 475th Judicial District Court.

The court also redesignated which commissioners will serve as primary points of contact for the various departments. Pam Frederick, Commissioner Pct 1, is over Records, Fire Marshall, Animal Control and the Law Library. John Moore, Commissioner Pct 2, is over IT, Facility Services and Veterans. Terry Phillips, Commissioner Pct 3, is over Road and Bridge, Pretrial Release, and Judicial Compliance and Collections. Ralph Caraway, Sr., Commissioner Pct 4, oversees Elections, Human Resources and Purchasing.