State law allows provisions for the public to make comments or raise questions to a governing body at an open meeting.

A governing body, such as a city council or school board, will often indicate that a portion of the meeting allows the public to speak by including phrases on the agenda such as “public comment,” “public hearing” or “citizen input.” These public input sections may either be related to an agenda item or not.

For instance, Frisco City Council includes a citizen input section on its regular agendas for the public to talk about anything that is not on the agenda. A public hearing, on the other hand, means the council is seeking input for that specific agenda item.

If public comment is allowed at an open meeting, it must be included on the agenda when it is posted.

A member of the public speaking at a meeting is usually required to fill out a card for the governing body with basic information, such as a name and address, to be included in the public record of the meeting.