The Government Public Meeting Scorecard

This scorecard is specifically designed to measure government/municipal meetings. Other

scorecards are available for nonprofit and for profit organizations. Rate each one of the
following questions on a scale of 1– 5, according to the text beneath the numbers.

#1 Was the meeting publicized in a way that ensured a wide representation of citizen
engagement, using methods beyond the bare minimum legal requirements?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes it was,
close this absolutely

#2 Was the physical space allotted for the meeting conducive to public participation?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes it was,
close this absolutely
Did the officials mingle at all with the public prior to and/or after the meeting?
#3
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes they did,
close this absolutely

#4 Were officials seated in a way that put them close to the front row of audience members?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes they were,
close this absolutely

#5 Were members of the public treated with due respect, and encouraged to participate?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes they were,
close this absolutely

#6 Within the legal “public comment” section(s) of the meeting, were there ample opportunities for the
public to ask questions and get responses from officials?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes there were,
close this absolutely
If there was an attorney present representing the convening public body, were they
#7 seated away from the officials?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes they were,
close this absolutely
Was there consistent participation from a wide variety of the officials present?
#8
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes there was,
close this absolutely
Did the officials offer instructions for citizens to find out more about issues mentioned in the meeting?
#9
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes they did,
close this absolutely

#10 Did the meeting’s chair suggest an easy way to locate minutes and supporting documents from the
meeting prior to the meeting’s adjournment?
1 2 3 4 5
Answer
No, not even Not really A little of each Pretty close to Yes he/she did,
close this absolutely

The Government Public Meeting Scorecard ver.01 1

The Government Public Meeting Scorecard
Results:

Add up your scores from each question in the box to the right.

After you add up your scores from all ten questions, you can compare the final
results to the following list of suggested analyses and actions.

Score Analysis and suggested actions

10 - 20 If your meeting scores below twenty, things are looking bad for your community. You
may want to start a revolution! There's a lot of work to be done, and huge hurdles are
in the way of public participation in the process. The officials in power probably like it
this way, and will resist any changes to a system that supports their status quo. Public
participation is likely outwardly scorned upon, and resented by those in power.

21 - 30 A score over twenty but under thirty suggests a community body-politic resistant to
public input. There is likely a public face of acceptance to public comment, but behind
the scenes officials find ways to limit public interaction and contribution. Find ways to
break through the shell created to protect officials from public scrutiny.

31 - 40 This score is hopeful, but there's room to improve. There may be one or a few officials
who truly value public input, but some others resist it. Find leaders on the public body
who seem to understand the issues and work with them from the inside.

41 - 50 You're lucky! Few local governments can brag about such a high score. It's important to
articulate what makes a public meeting work well. Make sure people know what's at
stake, and that they can have a real impact. Meetings should be informal, and open to
public input, while designed to get work done. It's a balance.

In order to truly change how public entities work with their communities, each question should
be examined on its own. There are many resources available to help design meeting
processes that work, and serve both the public and public officials. Here are just a few:

E-Democracy.org
http://pages.e-democracy.org/Public_Meetings

Beyond Public Meetings

http://www.beyondpublicmeetings.com/

Ohio State University Community Development

http://ohioline.osu.edu/cd-fact/1555.html

Daniel Pink - A Whole New Mind

http://www.danpink.com/

The Government Public Meeting Scorecard ver.01 2