How do I? close menu

Request to Speak Before the City Council

Please use the form below to request to speak at a City Council meeting. Below the form are procedural rules of Des Moines City Council. In the Request Details section of the form 
make sure you include the individual(s) who are requesting to speak in the "speaker(s)" field. Also include specific information regarding the topic in the "Regarding" field.

General Information
Name:

Address:

City or Town:

State or Province:

Zip:

Phone:

Email:

Request Details
* Speaker(s):

* Meeting Date

Regarding:

Procedural Rules of Des Moines City Council

Part III. Agenda
Rule 16. Citizen Agenda Requests.
Any citizen may request to have an item placed on the Agenda (including a request to speak) by filing such request in writing with the City Clerk prior to 5:00 P.M. on the Tuesday preceding regular Council meeting.  All such requests shall be placed under a single item on the agenda, by lettered paragraph and limited collectively to no more than one-half hour in duration. Each item shall receive three minutes or the same amount of time as the presiding officer determines by dividing thirty minutes by the number of speakers, whichever is less. No other person may speak on any such item.  Any item not addressed within the one half-hour time limit shall move in the same order to the next regular meeting’s Agenda, with any new requests added to the end of the Citizen’s Agenda item in the order received.

Part V. Citizen Participation
Rule 27. Citizen's Right to Address Council.
Persons other than Council Members shall be permitted to address the Council only upon specific Agenda Items.

Rule 28. Manner of Addressing Council.
At each regular Council meeting, if any requests to speak have been received, a person desiring to address the Council shall step to the podium, state his or her name, address, and group affiliation (if any) and speak clearly into the microphone. If the meeting is entirely electronic, the person shall use the prescribed method for comments, but shall not speak on the same item more than once. If the meeting is not entirely electronic, then only those persons in attendance at the physical location of the meeting will be permitted to speak and only in accordance with these rules and the City Code.  The person shall follow these rules and the direction of the presiding officer at all times.

Rule 29. Time Limit on Citizen's Remarks.
Citizens shall be limited to no more than five minutes speaking time per Agenda item on which the public is allowed to speak, unless
additional or less time is determined by the presiding officer.  Total citizen in-put on any subject under Council consideration can be further limited to a fixed period by the presiding officer.  A majority vote of the Council may alter the time limitations of this rule.

Rule 30. Remarks of Citizens to be Germane.
Citizen comments must be directed to the subject under consideration.  The presiding officer shall rule on the germaneness of citizen comments.  Citizens making personal,  repetitive slanderous or disruptive remarks or engaging in any action that otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of a council meeting shall not be recognized by the presiding officer from further comment before the Council during the remainder of the meeting.   Persons who make or attempt to make non-germane remarks on more than one item shall not be recognized by the presiding officer during the remainder of the meeting.

A committee will review this request and contact you if it is approved for moving forward to Council.