San Gabriel Valley : Speaking Out Against Curb on Speaking Out

Some South El Monte residents are livid over a proposed city ordinance, but if the measure goes into effect as planned in December, citizens won’t get a lot of time to complain about it.

The City Council voted 3 to 2 this month in favor of putting a three-minute time limit on public speeches at its meetings. The council used to have a five-minute cap on comments, but when Mayor Albert Perez took office last year, he told the city clerk to put away the timer.

Now, he says that was a mistake. Two councilmen and more than a dozen of the council’s regular audience members are contesting the proposed ordinance. They say that a time limit would not speed up meetings and that it would limit citizens’ right to participate.

“The meetings run late because the mayor lets them get out of control,” said Councilman Joseph Gonzales, who joined Councilman Jerry Salas in voting against the time limit.

The ordinance also calls for changing the council’s meeting time from 7:30 p.m. on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month to 7 p.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month.