City Council Meetings

To contact the Mayor or City Council Members directly:

The City Council may allow oral testimony during meetings. Comment periods are typically included as agenda headings when they are anticipated. You also may provide written comment to the City Clerk’s Office at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to a meeting, or in person during a meeting.

Written comment is not edited and will include all content and information submitted, which, for comment submitted as email, will include the email address from which it was sent. Comments are compiled, sent to the City Council, and added to the meeting record.

Guidelines

• Meetings will follow the Rules of Procedure of the Council of the City of Tacoma and/or Robert’s Rules of Order.
• You may not promote or oppose any candidate for public office or any ballot proposition.
• You may not use this time to advertise. Announcements of public events can be made through the City Council’s proclamations process.

Courtesy and Conduct

• All remarks will be addressed to the Council or Committee as a whole.
• All speakers shall be courteous in their language and deportment and not engage in or discuss or comment on personalities, or indulge in derogatory remarks or insinuations in respect to any member of the Council, or any member of the staff or the public, but at all times confine their remarks to those facts which are germane and relevant, as determined by the presiding officer, to the question or matter under discussion.
• Disruptions of the City Council and committee meetings are prohibited. Any person engaging in conduct that disrupts, disturbs or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the Council meeting can be considered a failure to comply with the City Council Rules of Procedure. Disruptions include but are not limited to:
  • Failure of a speaker to comply with the allotted time established for the individual speaker’s public comment;
  • Unduly repetitive or irrelevant remarks that are unrelated to the topic on the agenda or within the City’s jurisdiction;
  • Use of an allotted individual comment period for purposeful delay, including remaining silent or engaging in other activity without conveying a discernible message; or
  • Holding or placement of a banner or sign in the Council Chamber in a way that endangers others or obstructs the free flow of pedestrians or the view of others attending the meeting.
• Hate has no place in Tacoma, and we deeply regret that our City Council meetings and the City’s social media platforms are sometimes used as a weapon against beloved neighbors, colleagues, friends, and family members. As difficult as it is to hear and see such hatred, what City employees can do about these comments is limited. In 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States unanimously reaffirmed that there is no “hate speech” exception to the free speech rights protected by the First Amendment, and that government agencies may not discriminate against speech based on the speaker’s – or commenter’s – viewpoint.
• While the City is obligated to manage its public forums in a manner that is consistent with the Supreme Court ruling and First Amendment principles, we will not allow the spite of a few to cancel or dampen our whole-hearted enthusiasm and support for all our community members.

The presiding officer can call for a recess or adjourn the meeting due to disruptions or conduct that make the forum unable to continue.

View the City Council meeting schedule on Legistar.

What is public comment?

The public comment period is reserved for testimony on action items (motions, resolutions, and ordinances) on the current business meeting agenda.

Comment is not accepted on items forwarded to the City Council by the Hearing Examiner for which a public hearing has already been held. The Clerk will announce these items at each meeting prior to public comment.

When does public comment happen?

Public comment is held during each regular City Council meeting where action is taken, and is typically listed as a heading on the agenda. Public comment usually happens early in the meeting, after approval of the consent agenda and any proclamations, recognitions presentations, or announcements.

How do I provide comments for the public comment period?

The Mayor, presiding officer, or Clerk will provide instructions about how to request to speak.

Those attending in person will sign in at the back of the room; those attending remotely will click the ‘Raise Hand’ button or *9 on their phone after instructions are given at the beginning of the comment period.

The speaker’s name or the last four digits of their phone number will be called out when it is their turn to speak.

When it is your turn to speak, please identify yourself and topic(s) or item number on the agenda you will address for the public record.

Please address all remarks to the City Council as a whole.

Comments are limited to the amount of time announced by the Mayor or presiding officer, no more than two minutes per person per meeting. Comment time may not be added to or donated to other speakers.

Speakers may address the City Council once during the public comment period.

The City Council may allow testimony on a motion, resolution, or ordinance at a time other than the public comment period if the item is new or has substantially changed.

You also may provide written comment (see below) to the City Clerk’s Office at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the meeting, or in person during the meeting. Written comment is not edited and will include all content and information submitted, which, for comment submitted as email, will include the email address from which it was sent.

View the City Council meeting schedule on Legistar. 

What is Community Forum?

Community forum provides a space for community input that informs Council policy decisions; addresses service issues; supports civic education; and helps build trust, transparency, and stronger relationships between residents and their local government.

Community forum is limited to two (2) hours total. If there are not enough speakers to last for two (2) hours, the Mayor or presiding officer will close community forum after the last speaker.

When does Community Forum happen?

Community forum is held once per month, and may be scheduled during a regular business meeting in Chambers, or “in-district” as a special meeting of the Council or a stand-alone event. Check the meeting agendas on Legistar and public notices for updates.

Note: Community forum was revised per Amended Resolution No. 41924 in June 2026. 

How do I provide comments in Community Forum?

The Mayor, presiding officer, or Clerk will provide instructions about how to request to speak.

Those attending in person will sign in at the back of the room; those attending remotely will click the ‘Raise Hand’ button or *9 on their phone after instructions are given at the beginning of the comment period.

The speaker’s name or the last four digits of their phone number will be called out when it is their turn to speak.

When it is your turn to speak, please identify yourself and topic(s) you will address for the public record.

Please address all remarks to the City Council as a whole.

Each speaker’s remarks are limited to the amount of time announced by the Mayor or presiding officer, no more than 3 minutes per person. Comment time may not be added to or donated to other speakers. Each person may speak only one time during the community forum portion of any meeting.

The Mayor or presiding officer has authority limit all persons’ remarks to an equal period of less no more than two (2) minutes, if needed due to the number of individuals who want to speak.

Items of discussion are limited to matters over which the City Council has jurisdiction.

The City Council will be expected to listen to community comments and may prepare responses at the end of the community forum before adjourning.

You also may provide written comment to the City Clerk’s Office at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the meeting to enable staff to compile and distribute them to the City Council, or during the meeting. Written comment is not edited and will include all content and information submitted, which, for comment submitted as email, will include the email address from which it was sent.

If you comment during the public comment period or a public hearing during the regular meeting, you may also speak during community forum that evening. However, community forum comment during a regular business meeting cannot be made in support of, or opposition to, any matter on the Council agenda when the regular public comment period has already passed.

Public comment is taken at City Council standing committee meetings, and may also be taken at study sessions and Committee of the Whole meetings where action is taken. Public comment is typically included as an agenda heading, when it is anticipated.

View the calendar of meetings on Legistar for details:

• Community Vitality and Safety Committee
• Economic Development Committee
• Government Performance and Finance Committee
• Infrastructure, Planning, and Sustainability Committee
• Operational Strategy and Administrative Committee
• Study Session
• Committee of the Whole

How do I provide comments at a committee meeting?

The Mayor, Chair, presiding officer, or Clerk will provide instructions about how to request to speak.

Those attending in person will sign in to speak in the meeting room; those attending remotely will click the ‘Raise Hand’ button or *9 on their phone after instructions are given at the start of the comment period. The speaker’s name or the last four digits of their phone number will be called out when it is their turn to speak.

When it is your turn to speak, please identify yourself and topic(s) you will address for the public record. Please address all remarks to the City Council or Committee Members as a whole.

You may also provide written comment to the City Clerk’s Office at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to a meeting (see written comment, below), or in person during the meeting. Written comment is not edited and will include all content and information submitted, which, for comment submitted as email, will include the email address from which it was sent.

Written comment must be submitted to the City Clerk’s Office at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the meeting to enable staff to compile and distribute written comment to the City Council. Written comment received after this deadline may not be forwarded to the City Council prior to the meeting.

Submit written comment by email to cityclerk@tacoma.gov twenty-four (24) hours before the City Council business meeting, study session, Committee of the Whole, or standing committee meeting.

Please let us know which your comment is related to and which meeting it is for (City Council meeting public comment (for items on the agenda) or Community Forum; a specific public hearing; Council committee name; etc.).

Written comment may also be submitted to the City Clerk in-person at a meeting, or to the Customer Service Center at the Tacoma Municipal Building during regular office hours.

Written comment is not edited and will include all content and information submitted, which, for comment submitted as email, will include the email address from which it was sent.

Comments will be compiled and sent to the City Council and added to the meeting record.

See also the information above on how to appear before the City Council in person or virtually, and how to make oral comment.

Contact the Mayor’s Office to request the presentation of a proclamation or recognition.

The City Clerk’s Office posts public notices for public meetings and arranges for legislation to schedule public hearings before the Hearing Examiner and City Council.

• City Council agendas, minutes, and recordings
• Hearing Examiner’s Office
• Public Notices

Firearms and other weapons are now prohibited in Tacoma municipal buildings during meetings, study sessions, and committee meetings of the City Council; committees, boards, or commissions; and public hearings. Washington state law (ESHB 1630) prohibits the open carry of firearms or other weapons. A violation of these restrictions is a misdemeanor for a first offense and a gross misdemeanor for a second or subsequent offense. For more information and potential exemptions see ESHB 1630, Chapter 106, Laws of 2022.