Attending City Council meetings is a great way to learn about and become more involved with your city. But if you've never attending one before, what can you expect?

In Oakland, the Council meets on the first, third and fifth Tuesdays of every month. Meetings take place on the third floor of City Hall - at 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza - and are open to the public.

Two weeks before the meeting - The meeting’s agenda will be posted online.

Noon on the preceding Friday - The City Clerk will begin accepting speaker’s cards for the following Tuesday’s Council meeting. Residents can get a card at City Hall or fill one out online. Potential speakers must indicate if they wish to speak during Open Forum (6 to 6:15 p.m.) or about a specific agenda item (6:15 p.m. and later).

5:30 p.m. the day of the meeting - Consent Calendar. The Council will not discuss these items individually at the meeting. Items are put on the consent calendar when they are unanimously endorsed in a committee and the Rules Committee deems that they are not of high enough controversy to need debate at Council.

6 p.m. - Open Forum. Speakers must submit a card by 6 p.m. to speak at Open Forum, and speakers are generally allowed one to two minutes to speak. Open Forum comments do not have to address a specific issue on the agenda. If there are more speakers than can speak in time allotted for Open Forum, the remaining speakers will be asked to wait until the end of the meeting.

6:30 p.m. - Non-Consent Calendar. These are the items that the Council will debate; some will require votes. People that submit speaker cards for a specific item will be called to speak as the Council discusses that item. Speaker’s cards will be accepted until 8 p.m. After the non-consent calendar, the Open Forum will continue.

Midnight - Council meetings must end by midnight, unless the majority of the Council votes to extend the meeting.

If you require special assistance to participate in an Oakland City Council meeting, the City Clerk requests that you make your request at least 48 hours before the meeting by calling (510) 238-6406.

About Ruth Miller

Ruth Miller is an urban planner whose primary interests include travel, cartography, and Mexican food. Ruth is a policy fellow with Walk Oakland Bike Oakland.