Rehoboth commissioners can now vote at every meeting

Breaking from decades-old tradition, Rehoboth Beach commissioners will begin 2026 with a new meeting format – all meetings will be voting meetings.

As part of the change, it will be possible for items to be introduced and voted on at the same meeting.

The decision to try something new was made Dec. 19, but the proposal was put forward during a meeting in November. Commissioners Susan Stewart and Craig Thier brought up a few changes they thought could help meetings run more efficiently. Under the new structure, it’s possible to introduce and vote on a topic at the same meeting; if a topic needs to be discussed further, it can be brought back at the next meeting.

Mayor Stan Mills, who gets to decide how meetings are run, began the discussion Dec. 19 by saying he thinks the commissioners’ current practice works well.

The current and past practice of labeling a meeting as a non-voting workshop dates back to at least the 1960s. It signals to everyone that topics are only going to be discussed, he said. This allows for the information to be reported on and discussed by constituents, he said.

“I’ve liked this method. This method works well. It’s easy to administer. It’s easy for constituents to understand,” said Mills.

However, Mills said he’s willing to try the change, with a few rules.

Mills said he would only be in favor of introducing and voting on a topic in the same meeting if the issue is simple and has all the support documents available. Example include awarding a contract for a project or making appointments to city boards, he said.

There will still be two meetings each month, but there will be a change in labeling. The commissioner workshop, which takes place the first Monday of the month, will now be known as a commissioner meeting. The second commissioner meeting, which takes place the third Friday of the month, will be called a regular commissioner meeting.

Keeping a meeting labeled as a regular meeting is necessary because the charter calls for some things to happen at regular commissioner meetings, said Mills. For example, the charter calls for the annual organizational meeting to take place at the regular meeting in September, he said.

Any item that may be voted on will be labeled as such, said Mills.

Commissioner Mark Saunders said he supports the change in an effort to cut out redundancy. There isn’t always a need to hear a presentation at one meeting and then hear the same presentation at the next meeting, he said.

Commissioner Chris Galanty said he’s in favor of the change, but has concerns about unintended consequences of pushing things too quickly. Depending on the topic, some will need more evaluation and consultation, he said.

Property owner Carolyn Diefenderfer urged caution as commissioners move forward. She said she believes public comment will be stifled if more guidelines aren’t put in place.

Rushed votes have unintended consequences, said Diefenderfer, pointing to Lewes officials announcing they are planning to rescind an ordinance related to home occupations that was just approved.

“Change can be good, but there have to be specific guidelines,” said Diefenderfer.

It’s going to be a learning process. A few minutes after deciding to move forward with the new meeting practice, Mills said the first meeting in January was going to be a workshop. He later clarified the meeting would in fact be a voting commissioner meeting.

This is the second time this year the city has shaken up its meeting structure. In mid-November, the city’s two new advisory committees – environmental, and streets and safety – began meeting after two years of discussion and then organization. The city had five advisory committees, but they were consolidated to two in an effort to improve efficiency.