Council needs no new rules for speakers

You get the feeling that Auburn City Councilors know they should just leave their public comment policy alone, but they can't quite give up on their quest to silence certain residents.

Last week the council tabled a resolution that would require speakers to sign a form saying they will not speak about pending litigation or make personal attacks during the “public to be heard” portion of council voting meetings. This was the third time they tabled possible changes, which have evolved to the most recent proposal from an initial measure that would have barred speakers from addressing the same subject within a 90-day period.

The opposition to any such plan has been strong, and it appears councilors are at least listening. David Dempsey has actually said he opposes the change outright, and we applaud him for that.