PUBLIC MEETING LAW

1. PUBLIC MEETING LAW Clackamas County Counsel Steven Lounsbury

2. Policy • Ensures an informed public. • Public awareness of the deliberations and decisions of governing bodies. • To know the information on which public decisions are made. • To ensure that decisions of governing bodies are arrived at openly.

3. Citizen advisory boards and commissions are public bodies • Authority to make decisions and recommendations. • Subject to the Public Meetings Law (ORS 192.610 to 192.690). • Fact that its members may all be private citizens is irrelevant. • Scope of the Public Meetings Law extends even to private citizens when they serve on a group that is authorized to furnish advice to a public body. • Appointed by the Board of County Commissioners to provide advice.

4. “Public Body” means: • …the state, any regional council, county, city or district, or any municipal or public corporation, or any board, department, commission, council, bureau, committee or subcommittee or advisory group or any other agency thereof.. ORS 192.610(4).

5. “Decision” means: • …any determination, action, vote, or final disposition of a matter on which a vote of a governing body is required, at a meeting at which a quorum is present. ORS 102.610(1)

6. “Governing body” means: • …the members of any public body which consists of two or more members, with the authority to make decisions for or recommendations to a public body on policy or administration. ORS 192.610(3).

7. What is a “public meeting”? • The convening of a governing body of a public body for which a quorum is required in order to make a decision or to deliberate toward a decision on any matter. • Does not include any on-site inspection of any project or program, or attendance of members of a governing body at any national, regional or state association to which the public body or the members belong. • By-laws define the quorum requirement for County advisory bodies.

8. What is a “public meeting”? • Meeting for the purpose of gathering information to serve as the basis for a subsequent decision or recommendation by the governing body is a meeting. • Computer chat rooms, video conferencing, and telephone calls can be public meetings. If you do that, you must make at least one place available for the public to be present.

9. What is a “public meeting”? • Meeting room should be adequate for the anticipated attendance. • Within the geographical boundaries of the organization. • In a place accessible to disabled persons.

10. What is a “public meeting”? • The Public Meetings Law is a public attendance law, not a public participation law. Attendance does not include the right to participate by public testimony or comment, unless requested.

11. What is a “public meeting”? • The presiding officer has inherent authority to keep order and to impose any reasonable restrictions necessary for the efficient and orderly conduct of a meeting. • Smoking is banned at public meetings when premises is rented, leased, or owned by the public body.

12. Notice Requirements • Reasonably calculated to provide actual notice to the persons and the media that have stated in writing that they wish to be notified of every meeting. • Reasonable general notice must be provided to the public at large. • Notice for a regular meeting must include the date, time and place of the meeting and a brief description of the principle subjects to be discussed. • Paid advertising is not required.

13. Notice Requirements • Issue press releases, faxes, or make phone calls to interested persons for special meetings. • Special meetings require at least 24 hours’ notice. • An emergency meeting is a special meeting called on less than 24 hours’ notice. • The governing body must be able to point to some reason why the meeting could not be delayed to allow at least 24 hours’ notice.

14. Notice Requirements • An actual emergency must exist, and the minutes of the meeting must describe the emergency justifying less than 24 hours’ notice. • Notice for emergency meetings should be appropriate to the circumstances, usually by telephone or fax. • An actual emergency must be dictated by events and cannot be predicated solely on the convenience of members of the governing body.

15. Voting • All official actions by governing bodies must be taken by public vote. • The vote of each member must be recorded except for bodies consisting of more than 25 members. Even then, any member of the governing body may require that the votes of each member be recorded. • Written ballots are acceptable as long as each ballot identifies the member voting and the vote is announced.

16. Voting • Secret ballots are prohibited. • Failure to record a voteis not a ground for reversing a decision unless it was done to try and manipulate the vote. A court will presume that public officials lawfully have performed their duties. But don’t let this happen.

17. Minutes and Recordkeeping • The governing body of a public body shall provide for the sound, video or digital recording or the taking of written minutes of all its meetings. • Full transcript or recording not required. • The written minutes or recording must give a true reflection of the matters discussed at the meeting and the views of the participants. • All minutes or recordings shall be available to the public within a reasonable timeafter the meeting, and if not yet approved, they shall so state.

18. Minutes and Recordkeeping • Minutes need to include at least the following information: • All members of the governing body present. • All motions, proposals, resolutions, orders, ordinances and measures proposed and their disposition. • The results of all votes, unless over 25 members vote. A member can request the vote of each member by name regardless. • The substance of any discussion on any matter. • A reference to a document discussed at the meeting.

19. Minutes and Recordkeeping • Minutes or recordings shall be available to the public within a reasonable time after the meeting. “Reasonableness” is determined on a case-by-case basis. • Oregon Administrative Rule 166-150-0005 requires that minutes for county advisory boards and commissions be kept permanently. • Be factual. Don’t editorialize or make jokes in the minutes.

20. Violations of Public Meetings Law • A decision made in violation of the law shall be voidable. • The decision can still be valid if the governing body reinstates the decision in compliance with the Public Meetings Law. • A person affected by an alleged violation of the law may sue circuit court in the county in which the governing body meets to ask compliance with, or to prevent violations. • A person must be “affected” by a decision to have standing to file suit.

21. Violations of Public Meetings Law • If the court finds the violation was an intentional disregard for the law it can order equitable relief as it deems appropriate, including payment of attorney fees at trial and on appeal to the successful plaintiff. • Members of the governing body who intentionally disregard the public meetings law are personally liable to the public body for the amount paid due to the violation. • Violations of the public meetings law can also be made to the Oregon Government Standards and Practices Commission for review and investigation under ORS 244.260, which could lead to civil penalties under ORS 244.350.

22. Contact information Steven LounsburyClackamas County Counsel Public Services Building 2051 Kaen Road Oregon City, Or 97045 Phone: 503-742-5391 Fax: 503-742-5397 StevenLou@co.clackamas.or.us