SB 250 (2023)
Revise law governing remote participation in meetings
Rewrites the law governing remote participation in public meetings under the Right to Know law. For example, this bill changes the requirements for physical presence, from "a quorum" to "a quorum or at least one third of the total membership of the public body, whichever is less." The rewritten law also includes a requirement for remote participants to be seen and heard by the public, not just heard.
The Senate rewrote the bill. The amended bill adds this paragraph to the state law governing remote participation: "In-person attendance at meetings is expected. Attendance of a member other than in person shall be not more than occasional and shall not be allowed for successive meetings by the chair without justification. Attendance in person is not reasonably practical when, in the opinion of the chair, the member is away from the location of the meeting for a legitimate reason, including but not limited to, work, medical reasons, weather conditions, or childcare. Except for a medical reason, a legitimate reason shall not include a member who is absent from the state or plans to be absent from the state for 28 or more consecutive days."