HomeMy WebLinkAbout02-21-2025 South Bend Common Council President statement Regarding Council Rules CommitteeCity of South Bend
Common Council
441 County-City Building ● 227 W. Jefferson Blvd
South Bend, Indiana 46601
(574) 235-9321● Fax (574) 235-9173 ● TDD (574) 235-5567 ● http://www.southbendin.gov
NEWS RELEASE
Subject: Statement Regarding Council Rules Committee Meeting
Date: Friday, February 21, 2025
From: Council President, Canneth Lee
Contact: sbcityclerk@southbendin.gov
Statement of Council President Canneth Lee Regarding February 20,
2025, Common Council Rules Committee Meeting
Much is being made about a disagreement between acting Chair Rachel Tomas
Morgan, the Council Attorney, Bob Palmer, and Council Member Dr. Oliver Davis
at the Rules Committee meeting. Let me clarify.
The Rules Committee was presented with an unprecedented situation in conducting
the meeting. The relevant city ordinance provided for the meeting to be conducted
in an “nonpublic executive session” of the Rules Committee. This ordinance
predated by 14 years, an Indiana statute which limited the reasons that an executive
session could be closed to the public. In a nonbinding advisory statement, the
Indiana Public Access Counselor opined that the Rules Committee meeting should
be open to the public. Although that opinion is not in the least bit binding on the
Rules Committee, the Committee, in the interest of avoiding additional complaints
and avoidance of delay, chose to open the meeting to the public, while at the same
time adhering as much as possible to the other requirements of the ordinance
regarding participation in the meeting, the nature of an executive session, and
confidentiality, under the circumstances of and open meeting.
In the past, the Rules Committee conducted such meetings in compliance with the
relevant ordinance, meaning the only participants in the meeting were the Rules
Committee members and any others whom the Committee determined were
necessary to accomplish the purpose of the meeting. This is in accordance with the
Indiana statute which in reference to Executive Sessions, states in part, “the
governing body may admit those persons necessary to carry out its purpose. The
governing body may also admit an individual who has been elected to the governing
Canneth Lee
President
Rachel Tomas Morgan
Vice President
Troy Warner
Chairperson, Committee
of the Whole
Canneth Lee
First District
Ophelia Gooden-Rodgers
Second District
Sharon L. McBride
Third District
Troy Warner
Fourth District
Sherry Bolden-Simpson
Fifth District
Sheila Niezgodski
Sixth District
Dr. Oliver Davis
At Large
Rachel Tomas Morgan
At Large
Karen L. White
At Large
City of South Bend
Common Council
441 County-City Building ● 227 W. Jefferson Blvd
South Bend, Indiana 46601
(574) 235-9321● Fax (574) 235-9173 ● TDD (574) 235-5567 ● http://www.southbendin.gov
body but has not been sworn in as a member of the governing body.” To be clear, the “governing body”
is defined in the same statute, and under these circumstances, as the Rules Committee. Consequently, the
acting chair of the Rules Committee was acting within her rights and privilege to limit seating at the
Council bench to those necessary to carry out the Rules Committee purposes. Unfortunately, Dr. Davis
chose to disregard the requests of the acting chair and the Council attorney and insisted on remaining at
the bench.
Other Council members sat in the audience or viewed the meeting online. I sat in the audience as
requested. Council Member Gooden -Rogers vacated the bench when her participation as a Committee
member ended and sat in the audience for the remainder of the meeting. Council Member Bolden-
Simpson was not asked to sit in the audience only because she came to the meeting late after it was
decided by the acting chair that it was more important to proceed with the meeting than it was to continue
to try to reason with Dr. Davis.
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