SF 2518

1st Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 03/04/2010 11:40am

A bill for an act
relating to state government; making changes to the Open Meeting Law;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2008, sections 13D.01, subdivisions 1, 3, 4, 6, by
adding a subdivision; 13D.021, subdivision 1; 13D.04, subdivisions 2, 6.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.01, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

deleted text begin In executive branch, local government deleted text end new text begin Open meetings;
definitions new text end .

new text begin (a) new text end All meetings deleted text begin , including executive sessions, deleted text end new text begin of a public body new text end must be
open to the public new text begin .
new text end

deleted text begin (a) of a state
deleted text end

deleted text begin (1) agency,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (2) board,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (3) commission, or
deleted text end

deleted text begin (4) department,
deleted text end

deleted text begin when required or permitted by law to transact public business in a meeting;
deleted text end

deleted text begin (b) of the governing body of a
deleted text end

deleted text begin (1) school district however organized,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (2) unorganized territory,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (3) county,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (4) statutory or home rule charter city,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (5) town, or
deleted text end

deleted text begin (6) other public body;
deleted text end

deleted text begin (c) of any
deleted text end

deleted text begin (1) committee,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (2) subcommittee,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (3) board,
deleted text end

deleted text begin (4) department, or
deleted text end

deleted text begin (5) commission,
deleted text end

deleted text begin of a public body; and
deleted text end

deleted text begin (d) of the governing body or a committee of:
deleted text end

deleted text begin (1) a statewide public pension plan defined in section 356A.01, subdivision 24; or
deleted text end

deleted text begin (2) a local public pension plan governed by section 69.77, sections 69.771 to 69.775,
or chapter 354A, 422A, or 423B.
deleted text end

new text begin (b) For purposes of this section, "meeting" means a quorum of members of a public
body assembling to conduct public business.
new text end

new text begin (c) "Public body" means any multimember state or local governing body when
required or permitted by law to conduct public business in a meeting. The term also
includes a committee, subcommittee, commission, board, or other similar body of a state
agency or local governing body, a statewide public pension plan as defined by section
356A.01, subdivision 24, or a local public pension plan under sections 69.77, 69.771 to
69.775, or chapter 354A, 422A, or 423B.
new text end

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.01, subdivision 3, is amended to read:

Subd. 3.

Subject of and grounds for closed meeting.

Before closing a meeting,
a public body shall state on the record the specific grounds new text begin , including the applicable
statutory citation or a description of the legal authority, new text end permitting the meeting to be closed
and describe the subject to be discussed.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.01, subdivision 4, is amended to read:

Subd. 4.

Votes to be kept in journal.

(a) The votes of the members of the
deleted text begin state agency, board, commission, or department; or of the governing body, committee,
subcommittee, board, department, or commission deleted text end new text begin public body new text end on an action taken in a
meeting required by this section to be open to the public must be recorded in a journal
kept for that purpose.

(b) The vote of each member must be recorded on each appropriation of money,
except for payments of judgments, claims, and amounts fixed by statute.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.01, subdivision 6, is amended to read:

Subd. 6.

Public copy of members' materials.

(a) In any meeting which under
subdivisions 1, 2, 4, and 5, and section 13D.02 must be open to the public, at least one
new text begin paper new text end copy of any printed new text begin or electronic new text end materials relating to the agenda items of the meeting
prepared or distributed by or at the direction of the governing body or its employees and:

(1) distributed at the meeting to all members of the deleted text begin governing deleted text end new text begin public new text end body;

(2) distributed before the meeting to all members; or

(3) available in the meeting room to all members;

shall be available in the meeting room for inspection by the public while the deleted text begin governing deleted text end
new text begin public new text end body considers their subject matter.

(b) This subdivision does not apply to materials classified by law as other than
public as defined in chapter 13, or to materials relating to the agenda items of a closed
meeting held in accordance with the procedures in section 13D.03 or other law permitting
the closing of meetings.

Sec. 5.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.01, is amended by adding a subdivision
to read:

new text begin Subd. 7. new text end

new text begin Public recording of meetings. new text end

new text begin Open meetings may be recorded and
photographed in a manner that is not disruptive and does not interfere with the meeting as
reasonably determined by the public body.
new text end

Sec. 6.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.021, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Conditions.

A meeting governed by this section and section 13D.01,
subdivisions 1, 2, 4, and 5, may be conducted by telephone or other electronic means so
long as the following conditions are met:

(1) the presiding officer, chief legal counsel, or chief administrative officer for
the affected deleted text begin governing deleted text end new text begin public new text end body determines that an in-person meeting or a meeting
conducted under section 13D.02 is not practical or prudent because of a health pandemic
or an emergency declared under chapter 12;

(2) all members of the body participating in the meeting, wherever their physical
location, can hear one another and can hear all discussion and testimony;

(3) members of the public present at the deleted text begin regular deleted text end meeting location of the body
can hear all discussion and testimony and all votes of the members of the body, unless
attendance at the deleted text begin regular deleted text end meeting location is not feasible due to the health pandemic or
emergency declaration;

(4) at least one member of the body, chief legal counsel, or chief administrative
officer is physically present at the deleted text begin regular deleted text end meeting location, unless unfeasible due to the
health pandemic or emergency declaration; and

(5) all votes are conducted by roll call, so each member's vote on each issue can be
identified and recorded.

Sec. 7.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.04, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Special meetings.

(a) For a special meeting, except an emergency meeting
or a special meeting for which a notice requirement is otherwise expressly established by
statute, the public body shall post written notice of the date, time, place, and purpose of
the meeting on the principal bulletin board of the public body, or if the public body has no
principal bulletin board, on the door of its usual meeting room. new text begin If the principal bulletin
board or door of the public body's usual meeting room is not generally accessible to the
public, the public body must post the notice in an area accessible for public viewing.
new text end

(b) The notice shall also be mailed or otherwise delivered to each person who has
filed a written request for notice of special meetings with the public body. This notice
shall be posted and mailed or delivered at least three new text begin calendar new text end days before the date of the
meeting.

(c) As an alternative to mailing or otherwise delivering notice to persons who have
filed a written request for notice of special meetings, the public body may publish the
notice once, at least three new text begin calendar new text end days before the meeting, in the official newspaper of
the public body or, if there is none, in a qualified newspaper of general circulation within
the area of the public body's authority.

(d) A person filing a request for notice of special meetings may limit the request to
notification of meetings concerning particular subjects, in which case the public body is
required to send notice to that person only concerning special meetings involving those
subjects.

(e) A public body may establish an expiration date for requests for notices of special
meetings pursuant to this subdivision and require refiling of the request once each year.

(f) Not more than 60 days before the expiration date of a request for notice, the
public body shall send notice of the refiling requirement to each person who filed during
the preceding year.

Sec. 8.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 13D.04, subdivision 6, is amended to read:

Subd. 6.

State agencies.

For a meeting of new text begin a public body of new text end an agency, board,
commission, or department of the state:

(1) the notice requirements of this section apply only if a statute governing meetings
of deleted text begin the agency, board, or commission deleted text end new text begin the public body new text end does not contain specific reference to
the method of providing notice; and

(2) all provisions of this section relating to publication are satisfied by publication in
the State Register new text begin and on the agency's Web site new text end .