The Public Hearings Process for GA225
| Site: | Equip PC(USA) Training |
| Course: | Leader Training |
| Book: | The Public Hearings Process for GA225 |
| Printed by: | Guest user |
| Date: | Wednesday, November 27, 2024, 9:21 AM |
Overview
The General Assembly always provides opportunities for people to speak to the business before its committees, even if those persons are not themselves Presbyterian. In the truest sense, these are "public hearings" that are "open" to all. Of course, committees do not have unlimited time to hear from people, so there are always limits on how many people can speak and for how long each person can speak. But this year's Assembly will be hybrid (with only commissioners, advisory delegates, and limited resource persons present in the committee rooms), and so the usual limitation that speakers must be at the Assembly will not apply. That does mean, however, the process for requesting to speak and the means for addressing the committee will necessarily involve online technologies.
This resource provides a general overview of the process from signing up to viewing the testimony presented through public hearings. It is designed for both commissioners and advisory delegates who will review public hearing testimony and for those who are not official participants in the assembly who may wish to offer public hearing testimony.
Before we begin, we want to offer an important reminder: the standing rules of the General Assembly do not permit commissioners and advisory delegates to request to address the committee to which they are assigned through the public hearings process. You will have opportunities to speak to those issues during your community's deliberations.
Signing Up to Offer Testimony in Public Hearings
For those who want to provide testimony, there are two required steps to request to speak in public hearings. First, you must review the training for how you will provide your testimony, and then you will complete an online form to indicate your specific interest in the public hearings. Both the training and the sign-up form are available in the "Public Hearings Information & Sign-Up" resource in the "Advocacy" hub of this website (Note: because of the need to track both who takes the training and who completes a sign-up request, that resource does not permit "Guest" access).
Training for Testimony Submission
To access the information about the technical requirements and process for submitting testimony, click on the "Presenting Testimony" tile in the "Public Hearings" resource, and then the "Submitting Written and Video Testimony" link that will be displayed.
The training goes through the process step-by-step. What is important to know at this point is that those presenting testimony must have an Internet-enabled device that has a camera and microphone to record and upload the recording of the testimony and that a file with the text of the statement must also be uploaded (for translation purposes). The final screen of the review asks for confirmation that the person can meet these requirements and wishes to speak.
Answering "yes" grants access to the online sign-up form. Answering either "yes" or "maybe" will grant access to the uploading tool so that the person can give it a try and practice.
Completing the Online Request Form
Those who responded "yes" to the final question in the "Submitting Written and Video Testimony" review will then see the "Sign-up to Speak" tile on the "Public Hearings" resource's main page. Clicking on that option grants access to the "Online Sign-up Form" link.
The sign-up form asks for basic information about the person, the designation of the business item they wish to address, and whether they want to speak in support of or against that item. A person may submit additional forms to request to speak to other items before the Assembly if they so desire. The deadline for submitting sign-up forms is May 8, 2022.
Selection and Invitations to Provide Testimony
From May 9-11, staff of the Office of the General Assembly will be working with the leadership of each assembly committee to determine how the requests to speak in public hearings align with the number of slots allocated for public hearing testimony in each committee's agenda. The total number of available slots for an item of business will be affected by how many different items have been assigned to the committee (the more items they must address, the less time there will be for each individual item) and the relative level of interest expressed in the various items of business. If the number of requests exceeds the slots available for any item of business, speakers will be invited using a process that will assure equal numbers of persons speaking "for" and "against" the item.
Everyone who submits an online sign-up form will be notified by email on May 12, 2022, whether or not they are being invited to present testimony during the public hearings. Those who are being invited will be given access to the system for uploading their testimony to the respective committee.
Access to Statements
Once all the testimonies relating to the items of business before a committee have completed the submission and translation process, they will be released to the members of the committee and everyone who is following the work of the committee. A new section for "Public Hearings" will then be displayed for everyone who visits the committee's page.
Clicking on the tile opens a page where all the testimony videos can be viewed, or the testimony transcripts (in English, Korean, and Spanish) can be accessed and read.
Statements will be arranged in order of their item of business designation.