A notice on the Chicago city clerk’s website Tuesday announced the postponement until further notice of proposed rules restricting public access to City Council’s gallery seating. The postponement followed warnings from the Better Government Association that the change likely was illegal. 

The restrictions would have required members of the public to pre-register in order to gain access to the second-floor gallery of the City Council chambers, adjacent to the council floor. People who did not register 48 hours in advance of council meetings would have been relegated to the third-floor gallery, a glassed-in area with limited view and sound. 

BGA President David Greising in a Dec. 2 letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson cautioned that the changes had been made without notice, publication and a vote in City Council, a likely violation of the state’s Open Meetings Act. 

BGA Policy worked with the administration and City Council to secure a reversion, temporarily at least, to rules that have worked effectively for decades. The BGA argued that effective enforcement could secure safety and decorum, despite a recent upsurge in raucous behavior at council meetings and concerns about the security of alderpeople, staff and the public.

“We appreciate Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago City Council backing away from a plan that would have restricted the right of people to participate in their government by attending council meetings in close proximity to the people they elected to represent them. Safety and decorum at City Council meetings can be preserved through effective enforcement of existing rules, while preserving the public’s right to free expression,” said Greising. 

“The BGA’s policy team stands ready to assist in formulating any changes, should there be a demonstrated need, in ways that abide by the Open Meetings Act and protects the right of people to participate in their democracy,” Greising said.

The Better Government Association is a 100-year-old civic watchdog that seeks better government through investigative journalism, policy reforms and civic engagement efforts that lead to more open, equitable and accountable government. The policy team and investigative unit operate independently of one another, while both seek to advance the cause of better government in Chicago and across Illinois.