Hearing Notice

Notice for Commission hearings to be held remotely (via Zoom or other app) will be posted on the MVC calendar webpage (the official posting site for Commission proceedings), and noted on the MVC Extended Schedule.

Notice will specify that the hearing is to be held remotely and will include a link to this page, which explains the remote hearing process in detail (including information about how to access the remote hearings and how the public can participate.

Notice to Abutters

Notice of remote hearings will be provided to abutters in the same manner as a hearing held in the Commission chambers. The notice will provide all necessary information to join the meeting, reference the remote hearing format, and include a link to this page.

Attendance by the Public at Remote Hearing

To attend a remote public hearing, individuals can use the remote hearing link, the meeting ID and password, or the dial-in-by-phone information, all of which are included in the public notice and will be posted on the MVC calendar webpage no later than 12PM on the day of the hearing.

While any member of the public may attend via the remote access app, they will be muted throughout the hearing and will not be permitted to address the Commission unless/until the chair or public hearing officer recognizes them, as set out below.

Conduct of the Remote Hearing

The MVC chair or public hearing officer will run each remote public hearing.

When the public hearing is opened, the chair or public hearing officer will then explain the remote hearing procedures and protocols that will apply to the hearing.

If an individual is having any technological issues with Zoom (or other app), they are encouraged to watch the hearing on MVTV and send in written testimony with their questions and/or concerns. A video recording of the meeting can also be made available to members of the public upon request.

In general, remote hearings are run in the same order as non-remote hearings: MVC staff will provide a brief report; the applicant will present their proposal; commissioners will be given the opportunity to ask questions; and testimony from the public will be taken with individuals speaking in their capacity as representatives of public/town offices going first. Testimony from members of the general public will follow. Follow-ups will be permitted at the discretion of the chair.

Given the constraints of a remote hearing, commissioners may be permitted to ask questions only at specified times during the public hearing, and only as permitted by the chair. Typically, commissioners will be given one opportunity to ask all off of their questions of staff and the applicant, though the chair has discretion to vary this approach.

Any person not presenting or testifying will be muted by the remote hearing administrator and will only be allowed to speak when recognized by the chair or public hearing officer. People wishing to speak, including public officials and other members of the public, once recognized by the chair or public hearing officer, will be unmuted.

The Commission may schedule a continuance of the hearing to enable commissioners, the applicant, members of the public, and others to respond to matters that they may not have had the opportunity to respond to.

All testimony, in any format, must be received by the Commission by the close of the hearing, or later date set by the chair or public hearing officer.

Information Presented at the Hearing

Applicants should note that all materials to be presented at the hearing must be provided to the Commission by no later than 12PM on the day before the scheduled hearing. (This also applies to any materials to be submitted in connection with the oral testimony from the public.)

All materials will be shared/displayed at the hearing from a Commission computer with maximum picture size to the extent feasible.

The Commission will make every effort to have all materials that will be presented at the hearing available on the MVC website no later than 12PM on the day of the hearing.

Written Testimony from the Public at a Remote Hearing

Members of the public who wish to submit written testimony may do so in the following ways:

• Email: Lucy Morrison (morrison@mvcommission.org)
• Regular mail: P.O. Box 1447 Oak Bluffs, MA 02557
• In person at the Commission building: 33 New York Ave, Oak Bluffs

The MVC will accept written testimony up until the close of the public hearing (and possibly for a limited period of time after the close, if the written record is extended - this possibility will be explained at the close of the hearing).

Members of the public are urged to submit written testimony in lieu of oral testimony if possible.

Oral Testimony from the Public at a Remote Hearing

Any member of the public (including individuals speaking in their capacity as representatives of public/town offices) who want to offer oral testimony at a remote public hearing is encouraged to register by emailing the following information to Lucy Morrison (morrison@mvcommission.org) at least five hours before the scheduled hearing start time. Registration information must include:

• Name
• Name on screen (Note: this may be different from the registrant's name)
• Email address
• Cell phone number (to enable communication by text or phone call if transmission issues arise during the hearing)

Pre-registration is intended to enable the MVC to run the hearing more efficiently. Registrants will be included on the "speaking list" and will be called on before those who have not pre-registered.

Once the registration information is received and verified by the Commission staff, registrants will be notified by email that they are eligible to participate and offer oral testimony. Where practicable, the speaking list will be posted online and emailed to registrants so speakers can anticipate their turn. (Note: If time does not permit all pre-registered speakers to speak, the hearing will be continued.)

Members of the public who have not pre-registered may still offer testimony at the hearing if time allows (and, if it does not, they may offer testimony at any continued hearing). In order to alert the hearing administrator that they would like to speak, the individual must notify the hearing administrator using the "chat" (or similar) feature that they wish to speak. Individuals can also raise their hands, either actually or virtually, to initiate a chat (or similar feature) with the hearing administrator to be put on a list to speak. Individuals must include their name, email address and telephone number (as with pre-registration) and, if they wish to ask a question, they should include the person to whom their question is directed. (Alternatively, if the hearing is to be continued, individuals wishing to testify may pre-register as outlined above.)

When the chair or public hearing officer is ready to recognize a speaker, the speaker's name will be announced and the hearing administrator will unmute that speaker. The speaker should wait for confirmation from the hearing administrator after their name is announced before starting to speak.

Testimony by members of the public may be time-limited by the chair or public hearing officer and subject to other remote hearing protocols (as established by the chair and explained at the opening of the hearing).

After all testimony is complete and if the chair determines there is time, the chair will allow follow-up Q and A. The process for public participation in the Q and A is as above for registering to provide testimony during the hearing.

Members of the public are urged to not repeat matters stated in their filed written testimony, if any, and should not repeat the testimony of others. A statement of concurrence with the views expressed by others who have previously testified is sufficient. In addition, persons testifying at one hearing are asked to not offer the same testimony at any continued hearing.

The chair or public hearing officer has the discretion to call an end to the testimony of any member of the public if the testimony is not relevant, repetitive or is otherwise inappropriate.

Once an application has ben referred to the MVC, members of the public must not provide testimony or any information to a commissioner outside of the public hearing.