Q: What do communities need to know about conducting city council or other public meetings? Do we need to cancel meetings indefinitely?

A:  You CAN cancel your meeting should your governing body see the need to do so. There is no statutory process for cancelling a meeting. However, doing so in the same manner as posting the agenda lets the citizens know the municipality is mindful of their responsibilities and duties.  

Should you still see the need to hold public meetings, the Legislature went to great lengths to pass legislation to accommodate public bodies in this time of crisis. SB 661 was sent through the legislative process utilizing emergency procedures to ensure it was enacted quickly and available for immediate use. Under these circumstances not every issue was addressed or vetted as it would be during a normal legislative session. The Legislative Intent was very clear and left little ambiguity as to their desire. Municipalities utilizing this tool must trust in their intent and use this “temporary measure” in the spirit of how it was enacted into law. It is good practice to use this tool to conduct the business of your municipality and keep your government operating. OML had direct conversations with Legislative Leadership and it was confirmed that their sole desire was to give public bodies the ability to meet and conduct business without putting officials in jeopardy of contracting or continuing the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

See attachments: TeleMeeting Rules, AG Opinion on Open Mtgs