Rhode Island 2023 Regular Session

Rhode Island Senate Bill S0815 Compare Versions

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55 2023 -- S 0815
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99 S TATE OF RHODE IS LAND
1010 IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
1111 JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
1212 ____________
1313
1414 A N A C T
1515 RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT-- OPEN MEETINGS
1616 Introduced By: Senators Gu, DiMario, Valverde, Lauria, Burke, Kallman, and Miller
1717 Date Introduced: March 23, 2023
1818 Referred To: Senate Judiciary
1919
2020
2121 It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
2222 SECTION 1. Sections 42-46-5 and 42-46-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-46 entitled 1
2323 "Open Meetings" are hereby amended to read as follows: 2
2424 42-46-5. Purposes for which meeting may be closed — Use of electronic 3
2525 communications — Judicial proceedings — Disruptive conduct. 4
2626 (a) A public body may hold a meeting closed to the public pursuant to § 42-46-4 for one 5
2727 or more of the following purposes: 6
2828 (1) Any discussions of the job performance, character, or physical or mental health of a 7
2929 person or persons provided that the person or persons affected shall have been notified in advance 8
3030 in writing and advised that they may require that the discussion be held at an open meeting. 9
3131 Failure to provide notification shall render any action taken against the person or persons 10
3232 affected null and void. Before going into a closed meeting pursuant to this subsection, the public 11
3333 body shall state for the record that any persons to be discussed have been so notified and this 12
3434 statement shall be noted in the minutes of the meeting. 13
3535 (2) Sessions pertaining to collective bargaining or litigation, or work sessions pertaining to 14
3636 collective bargaining or litigation. 15
3737 (3) Discussion regarding the matter of security including, but not limited to, the deployment 16
3838 of security personnel or devices. 17
3939 (4) Any investigative proceedings regarding allegations of misconduct, either civil or 18
4040 criminal. 19
4141
4242
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4444 (5) Any discussions or considerations related to the acquisition or lease of real property for 1
4545 public purposes, or of the disposition of publicly held property wherein advanced public 2
4646 information would be detrimental to the interest of the public. 3
4747 (6) Any discussions related to or concerning a prospective business or industry locating in 4
4848 the state of Rhode Island when an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on the interest of 5
4949 the public. 6
5050 (7) A matter related to the question of the investment of public funds where the premature 7
5151 disclosure would adversely affect the public interest. Public funds shall include any investment 8
5252 plan or matter related thereto, including, but not limited to, state lottery plans for new promotions. 9
5353 (8) Any executive sessions of a local school committee exclusively for the purposes: (i) Of 10
5454 conducting student disciplinary hearings; or (ii) Of reviewing other matters that relate to the privacy 11
5555 of students and their records, including all hearings of the various juvenile hearing boards of any 12
5656 municipality; provided, however, that any affected student shall have been notified in advance in 13
5757 writing and advised that he or she may require that the discussion be held in an open meeting. 14
5858 Failure to provide notification shall render any action taken against the student or students 15
5959 affected null and void. Before going into a closed meeting pursuant to this subsection, the public 16
6060 body shall state for the record that any students to be discussed have been so notified and this 17
6161 statement shall be noted in the minutes of the meeting. 18
6262 (9) Any hearings on, or discussions of, a grievance filed pursuant to a collective bargaining 19
6363 agreement. 20
6464 (10) Any discussion of the personal finances of a prospective donor to a library. 21
6565 (b) No meeting of members of a public body or use of electronic communication, including 22
6666 telephonic communication and telephone conferencing, shall be used to circumvent the spirit or 23
6767 requirements of this chapter; provided, however, these meetings and discussions are not prohibited. 24
6868 (1) Provided, further however, that discussions of a public body via electronic 25
6969 communication, including telephonic communication and telephone conferencing, shall be 26
7070 permitted only to schedule a meeting, except as provided in this subsection. 27
7171 (2) Provided, further however, that a member of a public body may participate by use of 28
7272 electronic communication or telephone communication while on active duty in the armed services 29
7373 of the United States. 30
7474 (3) Provided, further however, that a member of that public body, who has a disability as 31
7575 defined in chapter 87 of this title and: 32
7676 (i) Cannot attend meetings of that public body solely by reason of the member’s disability; 33
7777 and 34
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8181 (ii) Cannot otherwise participate in the meeting without the use of electronic 1
8282 communication or telephone communication as reasonable accommodation, may participate by use 2
8383 of electronic communication or telephone communication in accordance with the process below. 3
8484 (4) The governor’s commission on disabilities is authorized and directed to: 4
8585 (i) Establish rules and regulations for determining whether a member of a public body is 5
8686 not otherwise able to participate in meetings of that public body without the use of electronic 6
8787 communication or telephone communication as a reasonable accommodation due to that member’s 7
8888 disability; 8
8989 (ii) Grant a waiver that allows a member to participate by electronic communication or 9
9090 telephone communication only if the member’s disability would prevent the member from being 10
9191 physically present at the meeting location, and the use of such communication is the only 11
9292 reasonable accommodation; and 12
9393 (iii) Any waiver decisions shall be a matter of public record. 13
9494 (5) The university of Rhode Island board of trustees members, established pursuant to § 14
9595 16-32-2, are authorized to participate remotely in open public meetings of the board; provided, 15
9696 however, that: 16
9797 (i) The remote members and all persons present at the meeting location are clearly audible 17
9898 and visible to each other; 18
9999 (ii) A quorum of the body is participating; 19
100100 (iii) If videoconferencing is used to conduct a meeting, the public notice for the meeting 20
101101 shall inform the public that videoconferencing will be used and include instructions on how the 21
102102 public can access the virtual meeting; and 22
103103 (iv) The board shall adopt rules defining the requirements of remote participation including 23
104104 its use for executive session, and the conditions by which a member is authorized to participate 24
105105 remotely. 25
106106 (6) Nothing contained herein shall prohibit members of a public body that is solely advisory 26
107107 in nature from participating remotely using videoconferencing technology in open public meetings 27
108108 of the public body; provided, however, that: 28
109109 (i) The public body shall provide members of the public, without subscription, toll, or 29
110110 similar charge, the opportunity to attend contemporaneously by remote methods using 30
111111 videoconferencing technology when any member of the body participates by remote methods using 31
112112 such technology; 32
113113 (ii) If the public body provides an opportunity for public comment during a public meeting, 33
114114 an effective means of communication between all members of the public body and all members of 34
115115
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118118 the public in attendance, either in person or remotely using videoconferencing technology, shall be 1
119119 provided. 2
120120 (iii) Notice of the meeting shall be provided in accordance with § 42-46-6. In addition, 3
121121 such notice shall include instructions for the public to attend and participate, pursuant to subsection 4
122122 (b)(6)(i) of this section by means of videoconferencing technology, or in person, and an email 5
123123 address where a member of the public can request a recording of the meeting pursuant to subsection 6
124124 (x) of this section; 7
125125 (iv) All documents to be discussed at the open public meeting shall be made available with 8
126126 the electronic filing of the notice submitted to the secretary of state pursuant to § 42-46-6(f); 9
127127 (v) A member of the public body who participates in a public meeting remotely is present 10
128128 for purposes of a quorum and voting; 11
129129 (vi) All members of the public body who participate in a public meeting remotely using 12
130130 videoconferencing technology shall: 13
131131 (A) Identify themselves when the meeting is convened; and 14
132132 (B) Be able to hear and see the conduct of the meeting and be heard and be seen throughout 15
133133 the meeting; 16
134134 (vii) All non-unanimous votes taken during a public meeting with members participating 17
135135 remotely using videoconferencing technology shall be taken by roll call, and shall be able to be 18
136136 seen and heard by other members of the public body and the public; 19
137137 (viii) If a quorum of the members of a public body participates remotely using 20
138138 videoconferencing technology from the same physical location, members of the public shall be 21
139139 allowed to attend such meeting at the physical location and the notice of the meeting shall include 22
140140 the location; 23
141141 (ix) Whenever a public meeting being conducted with members of the public body 24
142142 participating remotely using videoconferencing technology is interrupted by the failure, 25
143143 disconnection or, in the chair’s determination, unacceptable degradation of the video conference 26
144144 technology, the meeting shall adjourn; 27
145145 (x) The public body shall ensure that the meeting is recorded, make the recording available 28
146146 online within twenty-four (24) hours of adjournment of the meeting on the secretary of state’s 29
147147 website, and retain a copy for public inspection for a period of not less than five (5) years; and 30
148148 (xi) The minutes of the meeting shall record a list of members that attended the meeting in 31
149149 person and a list of members that attended the meeting remotely using video conferencing 32
150150 technology. 33
151151 (7) The authorization to remotely use videoconferencing technology provided by 34
152152
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155155 subsection (b)(6) of this section shall not apply to advisory bodies that are composed, in whole or 1
156156 in part, of a subset of members of, or any member of, the public body that created such advisory 2
157157 body or to which such advisory body reports. 3
158158 (c) This chapter shall not apply to proceedings of the judicial branch of state government 4
159159 or probate court or municipal court proceedings in any city or town. 5
160160 (d) This chapter shall not prohibit the removal of any person who willfully disrupts a 6
161161 meeting to the extent that orderly conduct of the meeting is seriously compromised. 7
162162 42-46-6. Notice. 8
163163 (a) All public bodies shall give written notice of their regularly scheduled meetings at the 9
164164 beginning of each calendar year. The notice shall include the dates, times, and places of the 10
165165 meetings and shall be provided to members of the public upon request and to the secretary of state 11
166166 at the beginning of each calendar year in accordance with subsection (f). 12
167167 (b) Public bodies shall give supplemental written public notice of any meeting within a 13
168168 minimum of forty-eight (48) hours, excluding weekends and state holidays in the count of hours, 14
169169 before the date. This notice shall include the date the notice was posted; the date, time, and place 15
170170 of the meeting; and a statement specifying the nature of the business to be discussed. Copies of the 16
171171 notice shall be maintained by the public body for a minimum of one year. Nothing contained herein 17
172172 shall prevent a public body, other than a school committee, from adding additional items to the 18
173173 agenda by majority vote of the members. School committees may, however, add items for 19
174174 informational purposes only, pursuant to a request, submitted in writing, by a member of the public 20
175175 during the public comment session of the school committee’s meetings. Said informational items 21
176176 may not be voted upon unless they have been posted in accordance with the provisions of this 22
177177 section. Such additional items shall be for informational purposes only and may not be voted on 23
178178 except where necessary to address an unexpected occurrence that requires immediate action to 24
179179 protect the public or to refer the matter to an appropriate committee or to another body or official. 25
180180 (c) Written public notice shall include, but need not be limited to, posting a copy of the 26
181181 notice at the principal office of the public body holding the meeting, or if no principal office exists, 27
182182 at the building in which the meeting is to be held, and in at least one other prominent place within 28
183183 the governmental unit, and electronic filing of the notice with the secretary of state pursuant to 29
184184 subsection (f); however, nothing contained herein shall prevent a public body from holding an 30
185185 emergency meeting, upon an affirmative vote of the majority of the members of the body when the 31
186186 meeting is deemed necessary to address an unexpected occurrence that requires immediate action 32
187187 to protect the public. If an emergency meeting is called, a meeting notice and agenda shall be posted 33
188188 as soon as practicable and shall be electronically filed with the secretary of state pursuant to 34
189189
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192192 subsection (f) and, upon meeting, the public body shall state for the record and minutes why the 1
193193 matter must be addressed in less than forty-eight (48) hours in accordance with subsection (b) of 2
194194 this section and only discuss the issue or issues that created the need for an emergency meeting. 3
195195 Nothing contained herein shall be used in the circumvention of the spirit and requirements of this 4
196196 chapter. 5
197197 (d) Nothing within this chapter shall prohibit any public body, or the members thereof, 6
198198 from responding to comments initiated by a member of the public during a properly noticed open 7
199199 forum even if the subject matter of a citizen’s comments or discussions were not previously posted, 8
200200 provided such matters shall be for informational purposes only and may not be voted on except 9
201201 where necessary to address an unexpected occurrence that requires immediate action to protect the 10
202202 public or to refer the matter to an appropriate committee or to another body or official. Nothing 11
203203 contained in this chapter requires any public body to hold an open-forum session to entertain or 12
204204 respond to any topic nor does it prohibit any public body from limiting comment on any topic at 13
205205 such an open-forum session. No public body, or the members thereof, may use this section to 14
206206 circumvent the spirit or requirements of this chapter. 15
207207 (e) A school committee may add agenda items not appearing in the published notice 16
208208 required by this section under the following conditions: 17
209209 (1) The revised agenda is electronically filed with the secretary of state pursuant to 18
210210 subsection (f), and is posted on the school district’s website and the two (2) public locations 19
211211 required by this section at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance of the meeting in accordance with 20
212212 subsection (b) of this section; 21
213213 (2) The new agenda items were unexpected and could not have been added in time for 22
214214 newspaper publication; 23
215215 (3) Upon meeting, the public body states for the record and minutes why the agenda items 24
216216 could not have been added in time for newspaper publication and need to be addressed at the 25
217217 meeting; 26
218218 (4) A formal process is available to provide timely notice of the revised agenda to any 27
219219 person who has requested that notice, and the school district has taken reasonable steps to make the 28
220220 public aware of this process; and 29
221221 (5) The published notice shall include a statement that any changes in the agenda will be 30
222222 posted on the school district’s website and the two (2) public locations required by this section and 31
223223 will be electronically filed with the secretary of state at least forty-eight (48) hours in advance of 32
224224 the meeting in accordance with subsection (b) of this section. 33
225225 (f) All notices required by this section to be filed with the secretary of state shall be 34
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229229 electronically transmitted to the secretary of state in accordance with rules and regulations that shall 1
230230 be promulgated by the secretary of state. This requirement of the electronic transmission and filing 2
231231 of notices with the secretary of state shall take effect one year after this subsection takes effect. 3
232232 (g) If a public body fails to transmit notices in accordance with this section, then any 4
233233 aggrieved person may file a complaint with the attorney general in accordance with § 42-46-8. 5
234234 (h) All city and town councils, all elected and appointed school boards and school 6
235235 committees, all zoning boards, all planning boards, and all quasi-public boards, agencies, and 7
236236 corporations (as defined in § 42-155-3 and provided for in the findings in § 42-155-2) shall provide 8
237237 members of the public with the opportunity to attend open public meetings contemporaneously by 9
238238 remote methods without subscription, toll, or similar charge to the public. If the above-described 10
239239 bodies provide an opportunity for public comment during the public meeting, an effective means 11
240240 of communication between all members of the public body and all members of the public in 12
241241 attendance, either in person or remotely, shall be provided. Notice of the meeting provided pursuant 13
242242 to this section shall include instructions for the public to attend and comment by means of 14
243243 videoconferencing technology. The public body shall ensure that the meeting is recorded, make the 15
244244 recording available online within twenty-four (24) hours of adjournment of the meeting on the 16
245245 secretary of state's website, and retain a copy for public inspection for a period of no less than five 17
246246 (5) years. 18
247247 SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. 19
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254254 EXPLANATION
255255 BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
256256 OF
257257 A N A C T
258258 RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT-- OPEN MEETINGS
259259 ***
260260 This act would amend the Open Meetings law to permit members of a public body that is 1
261261 solely advisory in nature to participate remotely using videoconferencing technology in open public 2
262262 meetings of the public body, provided that certain requirements are met. This act would also 3
263263 provide additional rules for municipal councils, boards, school committees, and other entities to 4
264264 follow regarding remote attendance by the public at public meetings, and would direct those bodies 5
265265 to provide an effective means of communication for the public to provide comment if there is an 6
266266 opportunity for public comment at the meeting. 7
267267 This act would take effect upon passage. 8
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