On Jan. 12, the Orange County Board of Supervisors agreed to change the way the public comments during board meetings after a complaint filed in Orange County Superior Court accused the board of censoring differing opinions, according to media reports.
The concession is part of an agreement that settles a lawsuit filed in 2019 by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation of Southern California, alleging the board’s rules for commenting improperly violate the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and the California Constitution.
“I don't think a whole lot is going to happen differently because it's really been my experience since I have been on the board that what the board is in fact doing has been what the ACLU wants,” Supervisor Don Wagner said.
But ACLU SoCal chief counsel Peter J. Eliasberg argues the Orange County Board operated like a monarchy.
“It was a kind of royal court where criticism directed at individual supervisors could not be heard,” Eliasberg said in a statement online. “This was clearly unlawful.”
One of the provisions in the settlement agreement is allowing people to comment anonymously.
“You’ve got to give your name so we know who to call when they're out in the lobby and your turn to speak into the microphone,” Wagner told Southern California Record. “But if you want to give a fake name or no name, I don't care. I think we ought to listen.”
Under the settlement agreement, a speaker request form will be provided to members of the public wanting to comment allowing for an alias instead of one's legal name.
“The ACLU was perhaps being a little too picky with the rules as they were being enforced,” Wagner said. “We don't have a problem with new rules. I encourage folks to come to the board and tell us what they think whether they provide their real name or not.”
Wagner was elected to the board in March 2020. Since then, he said there have been circumstances in which people yell, use foul language and curse board members.
“At the end of the day, free speech is a value,” he said. “We're big boys and girls on the board. You don't get elected to the board of supervisors having a thin skin. We should be listening to what people have to say.”
Critics have allegedly used racial slurs when commenting publicly to the board, according to media reports.
“There were definitely some racial remarks and some focus on the fact that a majority of the board is of Asian heritage and I don't think that has any place in the public arena but at the end of the day, I respect their first amendment right but focusing on the race or gender of any of the individual board members when you’re trying to make a point to the board doesn’t help anyone,” Wagner added.