About two weeks ago, we addressed the issue of how boards of education could conduct their school board meetings electronically and still comply with the Open Public Meetings Act (“OPMA”) when there is a severe restriction on public gatherings due to the coronavirus health crisis. Fortunately, the Division of Local Government Services (“DLGS”) recently provided additional guidance on this issue.
DLGS emphasized that telephonic or virtual public meetings without a physical meeting place should be utilized for the foreseeable future in light of the Governor’s Executive Order 107. Virtual meeting options include streaming and/or online meeting platforms, such as Google Hangouts or Cisco Webex.
While at least 48-hours notice is still required before a board meeting, such notice may be provided electronically during a declared emergency. The public must still be able to attend (view) the board meeting and provide public comment even if the meeting is conducted remotely.
While executive session should be avoided or limited if meetings are conducted virtually, some school boards may need executive session to address urgent issues. If executive session is conducted remotely, that part of the board meeting should occur on a separate and private virtual platform.
The complete DLGS guidance document can be found here.
