Clearlake council debates ending open Zoom public comment; directs staff to study moderated chat

City Manager Andrew Flora brought item 7 to the Feb. 1 Clearlake council meeting to revisit whether the city should continue allowing open public comment via Zoom after disruptive behavior at a recent session.

Flora and City Clerk Swanson reviewed the legal context, noting Brown Act emergency waivers used during the COVID period had been rescinded and that AB 2449 requires two-way audio-visual participation and live webcasting when members teleconference. Swanson told the council a recent survey of about 70 agencies showed roughly 50 had experienced Zoom-bombing and 42 either no longer allow remote public comment or permit it only in restricted circumstances.

Council members proposed several options. Vice Mayor Overton suggested participants submit messages through a moderated Zoom chat for staff to read aloud to avoid on-air disruptions: "Could we do ... the chat room? ... Melissa could read it," she said. Other members favored restricting Zoom to invited presenters, using webinar registration and passcodes, or requiring pre-registration so staff can screen entries. Several members said they did not want past indecent behavior to curtail remote access for homebound residents.

Legal and staff presenters cautioned that registration cannot guarantee truthful identity — people can use fake names or emails — and that stricter verification raises access and legal concerns. Staff noted webinar tools offer configurable chat and Q&A options, the ability to restrict who can see chat and word-filtering tools, and that more secure settings could be ready for evaluation.

Public speakers urged balancing access and safety. Bruno Sabatier said the councilhandled the prior disruption well and recommended mechanisms to cut off disruptive participants early; he and others emphasized remote participation is valuable for homebound residents. After discussion, the council directed staff to research moderated chat or webinar Q&A features, passcode/registration options, word-filtering and ADA implications, and return with recommendations. Several council members expressed a preference to try a moderated chat feature first before eliminating open Zoom participation.

No ordinance or formal regulation was adopted at the meeting; the council gave staff direction to return with implementation options.