Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H3025 Compare Versions

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22 HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 911 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
33 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3025
44 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
55 _________________
66 PRESENTED BY:
77 William J. Driscoll, Jr.
88 _________________
99 To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
1010 Court assembled:
1111 The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
1212 An Act relative to remote access for public bodies and town meetings.
1313 _______________
1414 PETITION OF:
1515 NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:William J. Driscoll, Jr.7th Norfolk1/17/2023Alice Hanlon Peisch14th Norfolk1/26/2023Lindsay N. Sabadosa1st Hampshire2/17/2023James C. Arena-DeRosa8th Middlesex2/22/2023Joanne M. ComerfordHampshire, Franklin and Worcester2/22/2023Patricia A. Duffy5th Hampden2/22/2023Samantha Montaño15th Suffolk2/27/2023Marcus S. Vaughn9th Norfolk3/8/2023Marc T. Lombardo22nd Middlesex3/10/2023Rodney M. Elliott16th Middlesex3/10/2023Brian M. Ashe2nd Hampden3/13/2023Mathew J. Muratore1st Plymouth3/13/2023Patrick Joseph Kearney4th Plymouth3/13/2023Carol A. Doherty3rd Bristol3/13/2023Margaret R. Scarsdale1st Middlesex3/13/2023Simon Cataldo14th Middlesex3/14/2023 1 of 8
1616 HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 911 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
1717 HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3025
1818 By Representative Driscoll of Milton, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3025) of
1919 William J. Driscoll, Jr. and others relative to remote access for public bodies and town meetings.
2020 State Administration and Regulatory Oversight.
2121 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
2222 _______________
2323 In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
2424 (2023-2024)
2525 _______________
2626 An Act relative to remote access for public bodies and town meetings.
2727 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
2828 of the same, as follows:
2929 1 SECTION 1. Said chapter 30A is hereby amended by striking out section 20, and
3030 2inserting in place thereof the following section:
3131 3 Section 20. (a) Except as provided in section 21, all meetings of a public body shall be
3232 4open to the public.
3333 5 (b) Except in an emergency, in addition to any notice otherwise required by law, a public
3434 6body shall post notice of every meeting at least 48 hours prior to the meeting, excluding
3535 7Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays. In an emergency, a public body shall post notice as soon
3636 8as reasonably possible prior to the meeting. Notice shall be printed in a legible, easily
3737 9understandable format and shall contain the date, time and place of the meeting and a listing of
3838 10topics that the chair reasonably anticipates will be discussed at the meeting. 2 of 8
3939 11 (c) For meetings of a local public body, notice shall be filed with the municipal clerk and
4040 12posted in a manner conspicuously visible to the public at all hours in or on the municipal
4141 13building in which the clerk's office is located and on the municipal website.
4242 14 For meetings of a regional or district public body, notice shall be filed and posted in each
4343 15city or town within the region or district in the manner prescribed for local public bodies. For
4444 16meetings of a regional school district, the secretary of the regional school district committee shall
4545 17be considered to be its clerk and shall file notice with the clerk of each city or town within the
4646 18district and shall post the notice in the manner prescribed for local public bodies. For meetings of
4747 19a county public body, notice shall be filed in the office of the county commissioners and a copy
4848 20of the notice shall be publicly posted in a manner conspicuously visible to the public at all hours
4949 21in the places as the county commissioners shall designate for the purpose.
5050 22 For meetings of a state public body, notice shall be filed with the attorney general by
5151 23posting on a website under the procedures established for this purpose and a duplicate copy of
5252 24the notice shall be filed with the regulations division in the state secretary's office.
5353 25 The attorney general may prescribe or approve alternative methods of notice where the
5454 26attorney general determines the alternative methods will afford more effective notice to the
5555 27public.
5656 28 (d) Public bodies may allow remote meeting participation provided that all persons
5757 29present at the meeting are clearly audible to each other. Remote members may vote and shall not
5858 30be deemed absent for the purposes of section 23D of chapter 39.The public body shall ensure
5959 31public access to the deliberations of the public body for interested members of the public through
6060 32adequate, alternative means of public access. Where active, real-time participation by members 3 of 8
6161 33of the public is a specific requirement of a general or special law, regulation or a local ordinance
6262 34or by-law, pursuant to which the proceeding is conducted, any adequate, alternative means of
6363 35public access pursuant to regulations established under section j shall provide for such
6464 36participation and shall be sufficient to meet such participation requirement. A municipal public
6565 37body that for reasons of economic hardship and despite best efforts is unable to provide
6666 38adequate, alternative means of public access that will enable the public to follow the proceedings
6767 39of the municipal public body as those activities are occurring in real time may instead post on its
6868 40municipal website a full and complete transcript, recording or other comprehensive record of the
6969 41proceedings as soon as practicable upon conclusion of the proceedings. This paragraph shall not
7070 42apply to proceedings that are conducted pursuant to a general or special law, regulation or a local
7171 43ordinance or bylaw that requires allowance for active participation by members of the public. A
7272 44public body shall offer its selected adequate, alternative means of public access to its
7373 45proceedings without subscription, toll or similar charge to the public.
7474 46 (e) Public bodies may allow hybrid meeting participation provided that all persons
7575 47present at the meeting are clearly audible to each other.
7676 48 (f) A public body may allow remote participation by all members in any meeting of the
7777 49public body and a quorum of the body and the chair shall not be required to be physically present
7878 50at a specified meeting location.
7979 51 (g) A public body that elects to conduct its proceedings under this section shall ensure
8080 52that any party entitled or required to appear before it shall be able to appear through remote
8181 53means, as if the party were a member of the public body and participating remotely as provided
8282 54in subsection 4 of 8
8383 55 (h) No person shall address a meeting of a public body without permission of the chair,
8484 56and all persons shall, at the request of the chair, be silent. No person shall disrupt the proceedings
8585 57of a meeting of a public body. If, after clear warning from the chair, a person continues to disrupt
8686 58the proceedings, the chair may order the person to withdraw from the meeting and if the person
8787 59does not withdraw, the chair may authorize a constable or other officer to remove the person
8888 60from the meeting.
8989 61 (i) Within 2 weeks of qualification for office, all persons serving on a public body shall
9090 62certify, on a form prescribed by the attorney general, the receipt of a copy of the open meeting
9191 63law, regulations promulgated under section 25 and a copy of the educational materials prepared
9292 64by the attorney general explaining the open meeting law and its application under section 19.
9393 65Unless otherwise directed or approved by the attorney general, the appointing authority, city or
9494 66town clerk or the executive director or other appropriate administrator of a state or regional body,
9595 67or their designees, shall obtain certification from each person upon entering service and shall
9696 68retain it subject to the applicable records retention schedule where the body maintains its official
9797 69records. The certification shall be evidence that the member of a public body has read and
9898 70understands the requirements of the open meeting law and the consequences of violating it.
9999 71 (j) The attorney general shall develop and adopt standards and guidelines for remote or
100100 72hybrid participation of public bodies.
101101 73 SECTION 2. Chapter 30A of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
102102 74section 20 the following section:
103103 75 Section 20 ½ (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law, charter provision,
104104 76ordinance or by-law to the contrary, the moderator in a town having a representative or open 5 of 8
105105 77town meeting form of government may request that the select board or board of selectmen of the
106106 78town call for a representative or open town meeting to be held through remote or hybrid
107107 79participation, including, but not limited to, by means of a video or telephone conferencing
108108 80platform. Such a request by the moderator to the select board or board of selectmen shall be in
109109 81writing and shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) the moderator’s determination and
110110 82request to hold a town meeting through remote participation in accordance with this section; (ii)
111111 83the video or telephone conferencing platform the moderator has determined to use to hold the
112112 84town meeting; (iii) confirmation that the moderator has consulted with the local disability
113113 85commission or coordinator for federal Americans with Disabilities Act compliance; and (iv) a
114114 86certification by the moderator that: (A) the moderator has tested the video or telephone
115115 87conferencing platform; and (B) the platform satisfactorily enables the town meeting to be
116116 88conducted in substantially the same manner as if the meeting occurred in person at a physical
117117 89location and in accordance with the operational and functional requirements set forth in this
118118 90section.
119119 91 A video or telephone conference platform used by a town meeting for remote or hybrid
120120 92participation under this section shall, at minimum, provide for the ability for: (i) the moderator,
121121 93town meeting members, town officials and any other interested members of the public to identify
122122 94and hear the moderator and each town meeting member who attends and participates in the
123123 95remotely-held town meeting, as well as any other individuals who participate in the remotely-
124124 96held town meeting; (ii) the ability to determine whether a quorum is present; (iii) a town meeting
125125 97member, town official or other individual to request recognition by the moderator without prior
126126 98authorization; provided, however, that to the extent technologically feasible, the request is visible
127127 99or audible to the public in real time and upon review of the recording of the town meeting 6 of 8
128128 100proceedings, preserved according to subsection (h); (iv) the moderator to determine when a town
129129 101meeting member wishes to be recognized to speak, make a motion, raise a point of order or
130130 102object to a request for unanimous consent; (v) the moderator to recognize a town meeting
131131 103member, town official or other individual to speak and to enable that person to speak; (vi) the
132132 104ability to conduct a roll call vote; (vii) any interested members of the public to access the
133133 105meeting remotely for purposes of witnessing the deliberations and actions taken at the town
134134 106meeting; and (viii) the town meeting to be recorded. Registered voters residing in the town
135135 107wishing to participate in a remote town meeting conducted pursuant to this section shall submit a
136136 108request to participate to the town clerk not less than 48 hours in advance of the town meeting.
137137 109Upon receipt of the request and verification of the requester’s voter registration status, the clerk
138138 110shall provide to the requester instructions for participating in the remote town meeting.
139139 111 (b) Not later than 10 business days following receipt of a written request by the
140140 112moderator for remote or hybrid participation at a town meeting pursuant to subsection (a), the
141141 113select board or board of selectmen shall vote to determine if the town meeting shall be held
142142 114remotely by means of the video or telephone conferencing platform requested by the moderator.
143143 115 (c) If the select board or board of selectmen votes to approve the request of the
144144 116moderator for remote or hybrid participation at a town meeting the select board shall issue, a
145145 117notice that expressly states: (i) that the town meeting shall be held remotely by means of the
146146 118video or telephone conferencing platform requested by the moderator; (ii) the date and time of
147147 119the meeting; and (iii) any information necessary for the moderator, town meeting members, town
148148 120officials and interested members of the public to access and witness the deliberations and actions
149149 121taken at the town meeting remotely. 7 of 8
150150 122 The notice issued by the select board or board of selectmen shall be: (i) accompanied by
151151 123the written request of the moderator submitted to the select board or board of selectmen under
152152 124subsection (a); (ii) filed and posted in accordance with the requirements of subsection (b) of
153153 125section 10A of chapter 39 of the General Laws; (iii) publicly posted not less than 10 days before
154154 126the scheduled date of the remote town meeting. The notice may include a date, time and place for
155155 127the town meeting to be resumed if the town meeting does not vote to continue the town meeting
156156 128remotely pursuant to subsection (f).
157157 129 (d) If the select board or board of selectmen votes to approve the request of the
158158 130moderator for remote or hybrid participation at a town meeting and the select board or board of
159159 131selectmen has not yet issued a warrant for a town meeting, the select board or board of selectmen
160160 132shall approve and issue a warrant pursuant to section 10 of said chapter 39 for the town meeting
161161 133that expressly states: (i) that the town meeting shall be held remotely or hybrid by means of the
162162 134video or telephone conferencing platform requested by the moderator; (ii) the date and time of
163163 135the meeting; and (iii) any information necessary for access and witness the deliberations and
164164 136actions taken at the town meeting remotely.
165165 137 The warrant issued by the select board or board of selectmen shall be: (i) accompanied by
166166 138the written request of the moderator submitted to the select board or board of selectmen under
167167 139subsection (a); and (ii) filed in accordance with said section 10 of said chapter 39, all other
168168 140applicable laws and any relevant provisions of the town charter or by-laws. The warrant may
169169 141include a date, time and place for the town meeting to be resumed if the town meeting does not
170170 142vote to continue the town meeting remotely pursuant to subsection (f). 8 of 8
171171 143 (e) Not later than 5 business days after a vote of the select board or board of selectmen to
172172 144approve the request of the moderator to hold a town meeting remotely or hybrid pursuant to
173173 145subsection (c) or (d), the town clerk shall submit certified copies of the vote of the select board
174174 146or board of selectmen and the written request of the moderator to the attorney general.
175175 147 (f) Any roll call vote taken at a representative or open town meeting held through remote
176176 148or hybrid participation pursuant to this section shall be taken by any means that the moderator
177177 149determines accurately and securely records the votes of those entitled to vote at the meeting,
178178 150including, but not limited to, roll call vote, electronic voting, voting by ballot, voting by phone or
179179 151any combination thereof. The vote of each voting member on a roll call vote shall be recorded
180180 152and kept with the minutes of the town meeting.
181181 153 (g) A representative or open town meeting held remotely or hybrid pursuant to this
182182 154section shall be recorded and the recording shall be preserved and made publicly available on the
183183 155town’s website for not less than 90 days after the conclusion of the remote or hybrid town
184184 156meeting.
185185 157 (h) All actions taken during a remote or hybrid town meeting held pursuant to this
186186 158section are hereby ratified, validated and confirmed to the same extent as if the town meeting had
187187 159been conducted in person and such actions are in accordance with all other applicable laws,
188188 160charter provisions, ordinances and by-laws.
189189 161 (j) The attorney general shall develop and adopt standards and guidelines for remote or
190190 162hybrid participation of town meetings.