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1. When and where are the council meetings held?

Regularly scheduled council meetings are held at 7 pm on the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month excluding Monday holidays. When there is a holiday, the meeting is held on the following Tuesday evening at the City Hall Annex, 205 4th Street, Lynden. Notice of council meetings are posted to the website's council calendar and the website's main calendar. 

The 2023 Council meeting dates.

2. Can I attend the council meetings?

City Council meetings, special meetings, work sessions and committee meetings are open to the public. The Lynden City Council regular meeting begins at 7 p.m. on the first and third Monday of the month with the exception of holidays. If there is a holiday the Council meeting is held on the next scheduled business day. Council meetings are held at the City Hall Annex located at 205 4th Street at 7:00 PM.  During a regular council meeting, you may:

• Listen and watch.
• Present a new issue or raise a concern under the “Citizen Comment" section of the agenda.
• Speak on a specific item during the "Public Hearing" section of the agenda. 

You may find that council moves swiftly in taking action on council agenda items. This happens when they have previously reviewed the topic in the council committee meetings.  

3. How can I participate if I can't attend the council meeting?

Council welcomes participation in all public meetings. When you feel strongly about a public issue or a local concern, the Council encourages you to share your information and thoughts with them. If you are unable to attend a meeting or would rather not give testimony at the meeting, you are encouraged to submit comments by letter or email which becomes a part of the official record. 

4. What is the council agenda?

The council agenda lists the business items that will be considered at the council meeting and the order in which they will be discussed.  The consent section of the agenda contains items that may be streamlined because they are routine and non-controversial items. The consent agenda items are passed with a single motion and vote. Commonly, debate is not allowed on the consent agenda items, other than the option to remove an item from the consent section for separate consideration.

5. What kind of actions may Council take?

During regular sessions, the Lynden City Council may take action in several ways.

Business is brought before the Council by motions, which constitute a formal procedure for taking actions. To make a motion, a member must first be recognized by the presiding officer. After the member has made a motion (and after the motion is seconded) the chair will call for discussion and then a vote.  

Another type of Council action is the adoption of ordinances and resolutions.  Ordinances (a local law of a municipal corporation, prescribing general rules of conduct). may be used for a variety of purposes, including administrative actions such as establishing offices and setting salaries, or they may be used for actions that control the conduct of the public. An ordinance is a legislative enactment, within its-sphere, as much as an act of the state legislature. Ordinances usually become valid 5 days after publication in the City's official newspaper, the Lynden Tribune.

Not all ordinances are codified as a part of the Lynden Municipal Code (LMC). Codification does not include an ordinance unless it is of a general or permanent nature.  The Council may amend or repeal an ordinance by adopting another ordinance.  

Council may also pass resolutions which is typically an act that is more of an expression of an opinion of the official body. Resolutions are not codified into the LMC. 

6. How do I participate in the citizen comment portion of the meeting?

To speak during the citizen comment portion of the meeting sign up with your name and address.  You may speak to any item or concern that is not scheduled for a public hearing. Your time is limited to 4 minutes. When you address council step up to the podium and speak into the microphone. Identify yourself by stating your name and the city where you reside.  If previous speakers have already made the comments you wish to make, feel free simply to identify yourself and indicate your agreement with what has already been said. If you want to address a topic scheduled for public hearing, you may speak during that portion of the meeting. 

7. What is the process for providing comment at a public hearing?

A public hearing offers you a formal opportunity to give your views to the Council on the subject of the hearing. 

To give testimony, step up to the microphone and identify yourself by stating your name and the city where you reside for the record. You are not required to give this information, but it is helpful for the Council to know who you are. When you talk to the Council during a public hearing, Council members, staff and the audience will remain silent. After the last person has spoken, the hearing will be closed. The City Council will then discuss and make a decision on the issue. The audience may not comment during Council’s deliberations unless a Council member requests more information from a citizen.

Council welcomes participation in all public meetings and encourages you to share information and thoughts at public hearings.   If you are unable to attend a public hearing or would rather not give testimony at the meeting, you are encouraged to submit your comments by letter or email which then becomes a part of the official record. 

8. What is an executive session?

When necessary, the City Council may recess to an Executive Session. Executive sessions are portions of regular or special meetings that may be closed to the public, designed for consideration of specific issues, where public disclosure would harm individual interests or legitimate interests of the governing body. During these closed sessions, the Council by law, may only discuss certain items of business such as personnel matters, property acquisition and disposition, and advice from legal counsel on litigation concerns.

Council generally may not take final action at an executive session. It may convene an executive session to discuss/consider/evaluate certain specified issues, however it should not be making any final decisions on behalf of the city in the executive session.

9. What is Lynden's form of government?

The City of Lynden functions as a Code City and has a Mayor-Council form of government.  Most Washington cities are classified as code cities under the Optional Municipal Code established in 1967, as an alternative to the basic statutory classification system of municipal government.  It was designed to provide broad statutory home rule authority in matters of local concern. 

Voters elect the nonpartisan, part-time, Council of seven person to serve 4-year terms.  Elections are conducted every two years which allows for staggered terms of office.   Council members are eligible to hold office if they are e a citizen of the United States and the State of Washington as well as an “elector” of the local jurisdiction for at least one year preceding the election.  

The principal job of a Council member is to make policy for the governance of the City and its populace.  A policy is a course of action for a community. Policy making often takes the form of passing ordinances or resolutions at City Council meetings. The Council does not administer or become involved in the day-to-day administration of city affairs.