Long Beach City Council will bring back phone-in, expand virtual comment July 21 (SB 707)
Long Beach CA — Starting July 21, residents can give live remote public comment under SB 707, with Zoom-style call-in signup through each City Council agenda.
Long Beach residents planning to speak at City Council meetings are getting an easier way to weigh in without driving to City Hall. Starting with the July 21, 2026 City Council meeting, the City will offer live remote public comment under California’s Senate Bill 707, using a two-way audiovisual or telephonic platform.
What’s changing for residents
According to the City’s Office of the City Clerk, the new setup is designed to expand access to live public comment—so people can attend and speak remotely instead of only watching from home.
Long Beach says the implementation is built around SB 707 requirements, including two-way audiovisual access that supports automatic captioning, the expectation that remote commenters receive the same speaking time as in-person speakers, and “reasonable efforts” to accommodate interpretation needs.
When it starts: July 21, 2026
On the City Clerk’s Meetings page, Long Beach says this expanded virtual public-comment option begins with the July 21, 2026 City Council meeting. The City also says additional participation instructions will be published through the meeting agenda materials for each specific session.
How the two-way virtual option is expected to work
Long Beach Post reports that remote participants who want to speak will be routed through a Zoom webinar-style workflow. People who sign up are expected to join the live meeting feed (with captions). When it is time to speak, remote attendees are expected to use the “raise hand” feature so officials can tally speakers, and then be unmuted when called on.
Long Beach Post also reports that the City will use safeguards intended to limit disruptions, including preventing speakers from unmuting themselves or using the chat function.
How phone-in/calling users will participate
The City Clerk’s SB 707 modernization approach includes telephonic participation alongside audiovisual participation. Under the planned workflow described by Long Beach Post, callers are expected to sign up through a link on the City Council agenda, then join the live Zoom webinar flow and use the same raise-hand process when their turn comes.
What to know: as of June 27, 2026, Long Beach Post reported that some operational details were still being finalized ahead of the July 21 launch—such as how the City will prioritize and order speakers between people attending in person and people calling in remotely.
Access safeguards and request timelines
The City Clerk’s guide says Spanish interpretation is available for all City Council meetings. For oral language interpretation for non-English speakers (and certain other ADA-related accommodations), the City directs residents to request help by phone at least 72 business hours before the meeting.
Long Beach’s City Manager memo on SB 707 implementation also points to SB 707 disruption expectations. It says the Council must recess for at least one hour if a disruption prevents the public from attending, observing, or commenting in real time—while staff make good-faith efforts to restore access.
On speaking time, the City Clerk’s guide explains that for public comment, speakers generally get 3 minutes each; if 10 or more speakers sign up, the time is limited to 90 seconds or less (determined by the Chair). The City Manager memo also emphasizes that remote commenters must receive the same speaking time as in-person speakers.
What to do next
- Find the specific City Council meeting you plan to attend—starting with the July 21 session.
- Open the agenda materials in the City Clerk’s OneMeeting public portal and look for the remote/public-comment sign-up link.
- Sign up ahead of time, then join the live Zoom webinar/call-in workflow when the meeting starts.
- If you need language access, submit your interpretation request in time—72 business hours before the meeting, as the City guide advises.
- If technical problems come up, be prepared for a recess while staff try to restore public access—per the SB 707 disruption expectations described by the City.
Bottom line: beginning July 21, Long Beach says it will restore live remote public comment for City Council meetings under SB 707—using both phone-in and two-way audiovisual access, with sign-up steps published with each meeting’s agenda.
Sources
- City of Long Beach City Clerk — City Council meetings & remote public comment (Meetings page)
- Long Beach Post — Phone-in/virtual public comment details for July 21 launch
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