Bill Text: MI SB1063 | 2019-2020 | 100th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Civil rights: open meetings; remote participation in meetings of public bodies; permit during declared state of emergency. Amend sec. 3 of 1976 PA 267 (MCL 15.263).
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-08-15 - Referred To Committee On Oversight [SB1063 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2019-SB1063-Introduced.html
SENATE BILL NO. 1063
August 15, 2020, Introduced by Senator HOLLIER
and referred to the Committee on Oversight.
A bill to amend 1976 PA 267, entitled
"Open meetings act,"
by amending section 3 (MCL 15.263), as amended by 2018 PA 485.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 3. (1) All meetings of a public body shall must be open to the public and shall must be held in a place available to the
general public. All persons shall must be permitted to attend any meeting
except as otherwise provided in this act. The right of a person to attend a
meeting of a public body includes the right to tape-record, to videotape, to
broadcast live on radio, and to telecast live on television the proceedings of
a public body at a public meeting. The exercise of this right does not depend
on the prior approval of the public body. However, a public body may establish
reasonable rules and regulations in order to minimize the possibility of
disrupting the meeting.
(2) All decisions of a
public body shall must be made at a meeting open to the
public. For purposes of any meeting subject to this subsection, except a
meeting of any state legislative body, the public body shall establish the
following procedures to accommodate the absence of any member of the public
body due to military duty:
(a) Procedures by which
the absent member may participate in, and vote on, business before the public
body, including, if feasible, procedures that ensure 2-way communication.
(b) Procedures by which
the public is provided notice of the absence of the member and information
about how to contact that member sufficiently in advance of a meeting of the
public body to provide input on any business that will come before the public
body.
(3) All deliberations of
a public body constituting a quorum of its members shall must take
place at a meeting open to the public except as provided in this section and
sections 7 and 8.
(4) A person shall must not be required as a condition of
attendance at a meeting of a public body to register or otherwise provide his
or her name or other information or otherwise to fulfill a condition precedent
to attendance.
(5) A person shall be permitted to may address a meeting of a public body
under rules established and recorded by the public body. The legislature or a
house of the legislature may provide by rule that the right to address may be
limited to prescribed times at hearings and committee meetings only.
(6) A person shall must not be excluded from a meeting
otherwise open to the public except for a breach of the peace actually
committed at the meeting.
(7) This act does not
apply to the following public bodies, but only when deliberating the merits of
a case:
(a) The Michigan
compensation appellate commission operating as described in either of the
following:
(i) Section 274 of the worker's disability compensation act of
1969, 1969 PA 317, MCL 418.274.
(ii) Section 34 of the
Michigan employment security act, 1936 (Ex Sess) PA 1, 421.34.
(b) The state tenure commission created in section 1 of
article VII of 1937 (Ex Sess) PA 4, MCL 38.131, when acting as a board of
review from the decision of a controlling board.
(c) The employment relations commission or an arbitrator or
arbitration panel created or appointed under 1939 PA 176, MCL 423.1 to 423.30.
(d) The Michigan public service commission created under 1939
PA 3, MCL 460.1 to 460.11.
(8) This act does not apply to an association of insurers
created under the insurance code of 1956, 1956 PA 218, MCL 500.100 to 500.8302,
or other association or facility formed under that act as a nonprofit
organization of insurer members.
(9) This act does not apply to a committee of a public body
that adopts a nonpolicymaking resolution of tribute or memorial, if the
resolution is not adopted at a meeting.
(10) This act does not apply to a meeting that is a social or
chance gathering or conference not designed to avoid this act.
(11) This act does not apply to the Michigan veterans' trust
fund board of trustees or a county or district committee created under 1946
(1st Ex Sess) PA 9, MCL 35.602 to 35.610, when the board of trustees or county
or district committee is deliberating the merits of an emergent need. A decision
of the board of trustees or county or district committee made under this
subsection shall must be reconsidered by
the board or committee at its next regular or special meeting consistent with
the requirements of this act. "Emergent need" means a situation that
the board of trustees, by rules promulgated under the administrative procedures
act of 1969, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201 to 24.328, determines requires immediate
action.
(12) If the
governor has declared a state of disaster or state of emergency under both the
emergency management act, 1976 PA 390, MCL 30.401 to 30.421, and 1945 PA 302,
MCL 10.31 to 10.33, then members of a public body in the geographic area
affected by that declaration may attend meetings electronically or
telephonically in real time pursuant to procedures that ensure 2-way
communication. Members of the public body participating electronically or
telephonically under this subsection are to be considered present with full
rights of participation as if they were physically present at the meeting. If
all members of a public body attend a meeting electronically or telephonically under
this subsection, the public body shall provide, in accordance with this act,
notice in advance of the meeting explaining its reason for invoking this
procedure and detailing procedures for the public to attend and participate in
the meeting electronically or telephonically in real time. This subsection
controls over any conflicting provision of a local charter, an ordinance, or a
rule.
