ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 1 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
ENGROSSED SENATE
BILL NO. 1547 By: Howard and Treat of the
Senate
and
McCall of the House
An Act relating to the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act;
amending 25 O.S. 2021, Section s 307.1 and 311, which
relate to videoconferences and teleconferences and
notice; requiring live stream of certain meetings;
reinstating certain alternative procedures in
emergency circumstances; specifying expiratio n of
alternate procedures; modifying certain notice
requirement in emergency ci rcumstances; and declaring
an emergency.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 25 O.S. 2021, Section 307.1, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 307.1. A. Except as provided i n subsections C and D of
this section, a public body may hold meetings by videoconf erence
where each member of the public body is visible and audible to each
other and the public th rough a video monitor, subject to the
following:
1. a. except as provided f or in subparagraph b of this
paragraph, no less than a quorum of the public body
shall be present in person at the meeting site as
posted on the meeting notice and agenda,
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 2 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
b. a virtual charter school approved and sponsored b y the
Statewide Virtual Charter School Board pursuant to the
provisions of Section 3-145.3 of Title 70 of the
Oklahoma Statutes shall maintain a quorum of members
for the entire duration of the meeting whether usi ng
an in-person site, videoconference sites or any
combination of such site s to achieve a quorum; and
c. each public meeting held by videoconference or
teleconference shall be recorded either by written,
electronic, or other means;
2. The meeting notice a nd agenda prepared in advance of the
meeting, as required by law, shall ind icate if the meeting will
include videoconferencing locations and shall state:
a. the location, address, and telephone number of each
available videoconference site, and
b. the identity of each member of the public body and the
specific site from which eac h member of the body shall
be physically present and participating in the
meeting;
3. After the meeting notice and agenda are prepared a nd posted,
as required by law, no member of the public body shall be allowed to
participate in the meeting from any loc ation other than the specifi c
location posted on the agenda in advance of the meeti ng;
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 3 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
4. In order to allow the public the maximum oppor tunity to
attend and observe each public off icial carrying out the duties of
the public official, a member or members o f a public body desiring
to participate in a meeting by videoconference shall parti cipate in
the videoconference from a site and room loc ated within the district
or political subdivision from which they are elected, appointe d, or
are sworn to represent;
5. Each site and room where a member of the public body is
present for a meeting by videoconference shall be open and
accessible to the pu blic, and the public shall be allowed into t hat
site and room. Public bodies may provi de additional videoconference
sites as a convenience to the public, but additional sites shall not
be used to exclude or discourage public attendance at any
videoconference site;
6. The public shall be allowed to participate and speak, as
allowed by rule or policy set by the public body , in a meeting at
the videoconference site in the same manner and to the same exten t
as the public is allowed to participate or speak at the site of the
meeting;
7. Any materials shared electronically between members of the
public body, before or during t he videoconference, shall al so be
immediately available to the public in the same f orm and manner as
shared with members of the public bo dy; and
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 4 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
8. All votes occurring during any m eeting conducted using
videoconferencing sh all occur and be recorded by rol l call vote; and
9. To the extent practicable, if a public body maintains a
website and utilizes a high -speed Internet connection, all m eetings
of the public body shall be streamed live on such website and posted
on the website after the meeting .
B. No public body shall conduct an executive session by
videoconference.
C. Upon the effective date of this act and until February 15,
2022, or until thirty (30) days after the expiration or termination
of the state of emergency d eclared by the Governor to respo nd to the
threat of COVID-19 to the people of this state and the public ’s
peace, health and safety, whichever date first occurs, the The
provisions of this subsecti on and subsection D of this section shall
operate as law in this state apply to a public body in any county in
which the Governor has declared a state of emergency until the
emergency declaration expires or is terminated .
1. A public body may hold meetings by teleconference or
videoconference if each member of the public body is audible or
visible to each other and the pub lic, subject to the following:
a. for a virtual charter school approved and sponsored by
the Statewide Virtua l Charter School Board pursuant to
the provisions of the Oklahoma Statutes, the public
body shall maintain a quorum of members for the entire
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 5 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
duration of the meeting whether using an in -person
site, teleconference, or videoconference or any
combination of such sites to achieve a quorum, and
b. if the meeting is held using either teleconferen ce or
videoconference capabil ities, and at any time the
audio connection is disconnected, the meeting shal l be
stopped and reconvened once the audio connection is
restored;
2. The meeting notice and agenda prepared in advance of the
meeting, as required b y law, shall indicate if the meeting will
include teleconferencing or videoconferencing and shall also sta te:
a. each public body member appearing remotely and the
method of each member’s remote appearance, and
b. the identity of the public body member or members who
will be physically present at the meeting site, if
any;
3. After the meeting notice and agend a are prepared and posted
as required by law, public body membe rs shall not be permitted to
alter their method of attendance; provided, however, those members
who were identified as appearing remotely may be pe rmitted to
physically appear at the meeting si te, if any, for the meeting;
4. The public body shall be allow ed to participate and speak,
as allowed by rule or policy set by the public body, in a meeting
which utilizes teleco nference or videoconference in the same manner
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 6 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
and to the same extent as the public is allowed to participate or
speak during a meeting wher e all public body members are physically
present together at the meeting site;
5. Any documents or other materials provided to members of the
public body or shared electronically between membe rs of the public
body during a meeting utilizing teleconferenci ng or
videoconferencing shall also be immediately available to the public
on the website of the public body, if the public body maintains a
website; and
6. All votes occurring during any meeti ng utilizing
teleconference or videoconference shall occur and be recorded by
roll call votes.
D. Public bodies are permitted to conduct an executive session
by teleconference or videoconference. For such exe cutive sessions,
no public body member is requ ired to be physically present so long
as each public body membe r is audible or visible to each other. The
meeting notice and agenda prepared in advan ce of the meeting as
required by law shall indicate if the e xecutive session will include
teleconferencing or videoconferencing and shall also state the
identity of each public body member appearing remotely, the method
of each member’s remote appearance, and whether any member will b e
physically present at the mee ting site, if any, for the executive
session.
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 7 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 25 O.S. 2021, Section 311, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 311. A. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law,
all regularly scheduled, continued or rec onvened, special or
emergency meetings of public bodies shall be preceded by public
notice as follows:
1. All public bodies shall give notice in writing by December
15 of each calendar year of th e schedule showing the date, tim e and
place of the regularly scheduled meetings of such public bodies for
the following calendar year;
2. All state public bodies including, but not limited t o,
public trusts and other bodies with the state as beneficiary, shall
give such notice to the Se cretary of State;
3. All county public bodies including, but not limited to,
public trusts and any other bodies with the county as beneficiary,
shall give such notice to the county clerk of the county wherein
they are principally located;
4. All municipal public bodies including, b ut not limited to,
public trusts and any other bodies with the municipality as
beneficiary, shall give such notice to the municipal clerk of the
municipality wherein they are principally located;
5. All multicounty, regional, a reawide or district public
bodies including, but not limited to, district boards of education,
shall give such notice to the county clerk of the county wherein
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 8 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
they are principally located, or if no office exists, to the cou nty
clerk of the county or count ies served by such public bo dy;
6. All governing boards of state institutions of higher
education, and committees and subcommittees thereof, shall give such
notice to the Secretary of State. All other public bodies covered
by the provisions of the Oklaho ma Open Meeting Act which ex ist under
the auspices of a state institution of higher education, but a
majority of whose members are not members of the instituti on’s
governing board, shall give such notice to the county clerk of the
county wherein the instit ution is principally located ;
7. The Secretary of State and each county clerk or municipal
clerk shall keep a record of all notices received in a register ope n
to the public for inspection during regular office hours, and, in
addition, shall make known up on any request of any person the
contents of the register;
8. If any change is to be made of the date, time or place of
regularly scheduled meetings of public bodies, then notice in
writing shall be given to the Secretary o f State or county clerk or
municipal clerk, as required here in, not less than ten (10) days
prior to the implementation of any such change;
9. In addition to the advance public notice in wri ting required
to be filed for regularly scheduled meetings, descr ibed in paragraph
1 of this subsection, all public bodies sh all, at least twenty-four
(24) hours prior to such regularly scheduled meetings, display
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 9 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
public notice of the meeting by at least o ne of the following
methods:
a. by posting information that inclu des date, time, place
and agenda for the meeting in prominen t public view at
the principal office of the public body or at the
location of the meeting if no office exists, or
b. by posting on the public body’s Internet website the
date, time, place and age nda for the meeting in
accordance with Section 3106.2 of Tit le 74 of the
Oklahoma Statutes. Additionally, the public body
shall offer and consistently maintain an email
distribution system f or distribution of such notice of
a public meeting required by th is subsection, and any
person may request to be included wit hout charge, and
their request shall be accepted. The emailed notice
of a public meeting required by this subsection shall
include in the body of the email or as an attachment
to the email the date, time, place and agenda for t he
meeting and it shall be s ent no less than twenty-four
(24) hours prior to the meeting. Additionally, except
as provided in subparagraph c of this paragraph , the
public body shall make the notice of a public meeting
required by this subsection available to the public in
the principal office of the public body or at the
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 10 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
location of the meeting during normal business hours
at least twenty–four (24) hours prior to the meeting,
or
c. upon the effective date of this act and unt il February
15, 2022, or until t hirty (30) days after the
expiration or termination of the state of emergency
declared by the Governor to respond to the threat of
COVID-19 to the people of th is state and the public ’s
peace, health and safety, whichever dat e first occurs
for a public body in any county for which the Governor
declares a state of emergency until the emergency
declaration expires or is terminated , the public body
shall not be required to make the notice of a public
meeting available to the publ ic in the principal
office of the public body or at the loca tion of the
meeting during normal business hours at least twenty -
four (24) hours prior to the meeting;
10. The twenty-four (24) hours required in paragraph 9 of this
subsection shall exclude Satu rdays, Sundays and holidays lega lly
declared by the State of Oklahoma. The posting or distribution of a
notice of a public meeting as described in paragraph 9 of this
subsection shall not preclude a public body from considering at its
regularly scheduled meeting any new business. “New business”, as
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 11 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
used herein, shall mean any matter not known about or which could
not have been reasonably foreseen prior to the time of the posting;
11. In the event any meeting is to be continued or reconvened,
public notice of such action including date, time and place of the
continued meeting, shall be given by announcement at the original
meeting. Only matters appearing on the agenda of the meeting which
is continued may be discussed at the continued or reconvened
meeting;
12. Special meetings of publ ic bodies shall not be held without
public notice being given at least forty -eight (48) hours prior to
the meetings. Such public notice of date, time and place shall be
given in writing, in person or by telephonic means to the Secretary
of State or to the county clerk or to the muni cipal clerk by public
bodies in the manner set forth in paragraphs 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of
this subsection. The public body also shall cause written notice of
the date, time and place of the meeting to be mailed or delivered to
each person, newspaper, wire se rvice, radio station and television
station that has filed a written request for notice of meetings of
the public body with the clerk or secretary of the public body or
with some other person desi gnated by the public body. Such written
notice shall be mailed or delivered at least forty-eight (48) hours
prior to the special meeting. The public body may charge a fee of
up to Eighteen Dollars ($18.00) per year to persons or entities
filing a written request for notice of meetings, and may require
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 12 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
such persons or entities to renew the request for notice annually.
In addition, all public bodies shall, at least twenty -four (24)
hours prior to such special meetings, display public notice of the
meeting, setting forth thereon the date, time, place and agenda for
the meeting. Only matters appearing on the posted agenda may be
considered at the special meeting. Such public notice shall be
posted in prominent public view at the principal office of the
public body or at the location of th e meeting if no office exist s.
Twenty-four (24) hours prior public posting shall exclude Saturdays,
Sundays and holidays legally declared by the State of Oklahoma. In
lieu of the public posting requirements of this paragra ph, a public
body may elect to follow the requirements found in subparagraph b of
paragraph 9 of this subsection, provided that forty -eight-hour
notice is required for special meetings and that the forty -eight-
hour requirement shall exclude Saturdays, Sund ays and holidays
legally declared by the State of Oklahoma;
13. In the event of an emergency, an emergency meeting of a
public body may be held without the public notice heretofore
required. Should an emergency meeting of a public body be
necessary, the person calling such a meeting sh all give as much
advance public notice as is reasonable and possible under the
circumstances existing, in person or by telephonic or electronic
means; and
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 13 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
14. A public body that gives public notice of a meeting for
which there will be a videoconference op tion in accordance with
Section 307.1 of this title shall not modify the method of meeting
described in the notice prior to the meeting and shall conduct the
meeting according to the methods described in the notice. If a co de
or password is required to ac cess the videoconference mee ting, the
code or password shall be included in the public notice.
B. 1. All agendas required pursuant to the provisions of this
section shall identify all items of business to be transacted by a
public body at a meeting inclu ding, but not limited to, an y proposed
executive session for the purpose of engaging in deliberations or
rendering a final or intermediate decision in an individual
proceeding prescribed by the Administrative Procedures Act.
2. If a public body proposes t o conduct an executive sessi on,
the agenda shall:
a. contain sufficient information for the public to
ascertain that an executive session will be proposed,
b. identify the items of business and purposes of the
executive session, and
c. state specifically t he provision of Section 307 of
this title authorizing the executive session.
SECTION 3. It being immediately neces sary for the preservation
of the public peace, health or safety, an emergency is hereby
ENGR. S. B. NO. 1547 Page 14 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect a nd
be in full force from and after its passage an d approval.
Passed the Senate the 8th day of March, 2022.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
Passed the House of Representatives the ____ day of __________,
2022.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives