Remote Meeting Attendance for Public Body Members 65 years and Older (H 5266, S 415)

We opposed a bill which would have allowed any member of a public body who is 65 years of age or older to participate in meetings of the body remotely, by phone or video.

We opposed a bill which would have allowed any member of a public body who is 65 years of age or older to participate in meetings of the body remotely, by phone or video. The state Open Meetings Act currently allows for remote participation by public body members under very narrow and specific circumstances – this would have greatly expanded those conditions in a manner which, we argued, would undermine the goal of accountability by allowing many more public officials to meet and deliberate without being in person. This legislation died in committee.