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Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1998 SESSION
987233860Patrons-- Newman, Howell, Schrock and Ticer; Delegates: Almand, Bennett, Diamonstein, May, Plum and Scott
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§ 2.1-341, 2.1-343, and 2.1-343.1 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 2.1-341. Definitions.
The following terms, whenever used or referred to in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
"Criminal incident information" means a general description of the criminal activity reported, the date and general location the alleged crime was committed, the identity of the investigating officer, and a general description of any injuries suffered or property damaged or stolen; however, the identity of any victim, witness, undercover officer, or investigative techniques or procedures need not but may be disclosed unless disclosure is prohibited or restricted under § 19.2-11.2. The identity of any individual providing information about a crime or criminal activity under a promise of anonymity shall not be disclosed.
"Electronic communication means" means any video, telephonic, or other communication method which consists of, pertains to, is based on, is operated by, or otherwise involves the control of electrons or other charge carriers to exchange, send, receive, or in any way transmit the public business in a meeting.
"Emergency" means an unforeseen circumstance that renders the notice required by § 2.1-343 impossible or impracticable and that requires immediate action.
"Executive meeting" or "closed meeting" means a meeting from which the public is excluded.
"Meeting" or "meetings" means the meetings including work sessions, when
sitting physically, or through telephonic or video equipment
electronic communication
means pursuant to § 2.1-343.1, as a
body or entity, or as an informal assemblage of (i) as many as three members,
or (ii) a quorum, if less than three, of the constituent membership, wherever
held, with or without minutes being taken, whether or not votes are cast, of
any public body, including any legislative body, authority, board, bureau,
commission, district or agency of the Commonwealth or of any political
subdivision of the Commonwealth, including cities, towns and counties;
municipal councils, governing bodies of counties, school boards and planning
commissions; boards of visitors of state institutions of higher education; and
other organizations, corporations or agencies in the Commonwealth, supported
wholly or principally by public funds. The notice provisions of this chapter
shall not apply to the said informal meetings or gatherings of the members of
the General Assembly. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to make
unlawful the gathering or attendance of two or more members of a public body
(i) at any place or function where no part of the purpose of such gathering or
attendance is the discussion or transaction of any public business, and such
gathering or attendance was not called or prearranged with any purpose of
discussing or transacting any business of the public body or (ii) at a public
meeting whose purpose is to inform the electorate and not to transact public
business or to hold discussions relating to the transaction of public business,
even though the performance of the members individually or collectively in the
conduct of public business may be a topic of discussion or debate at such
public meeting. The gathering of employees of a public body shall not be deemed
a "meeting" subject to the provisions of this chapter.
No meeting shall be conducted through telephonic, video, electronic or
other communication means where the members are not physically assembled to
discuss or transact public business, except as provided in Meetings
may be held by electronic communication
means pursuant to §
2.1-343.1 or as may specifically be provided in Title 54.1 for the summary
suspension of professional licenses.
"Official records" means all written or printed books, papers, letters, documents, maps and tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, reports or other material, regardless of physical form or characteristics, prepared, owned, or in the possession of a public body or any employee or officer of a public body in the transaction of public business.
"Open meeting" or "public meeting" means a meeting at which the public may be present.
"Public body" means any of the groups, agencies or organizations enumerated in the definition of "meeting" as provided in this section, including any committees or subcommittees of the public body created to perform delegated functions of the public body or to advise the public body. Corporations organized by the Virginia Retirement System are "public bodies" for purposes of this chapter.
"Scholastic records" means those records, files, documents, and other materials containing information about a student and maintained by a public body which is an educational agency or institution or by a person acting for such agency or institution, but, for the purpose of access by a student, does not include (i) financial records of a parent or guardian nor (ii) records of instructional, supervisory, and administrative personnel and educational personnel ancillary thereto, which are in the sole possession of the maker thereof and which are not accessible or revealed to any other person except a substitute.
§ 2.1-343. Meetings to be public; notice of meetings; recordings; minutes; voting.
Except as otherwise specifically provided by law and except as provided in
§§ 2.1-344 and 2.1-345, all meetings of public bodies shall be public
meetings, including meetings and work sessions during which no votes are cast
or any decisions made. NoticeExcept in an emergency,
notice, including the time, date and place of each
meeting, shall be furnished to any citizen of the Commonwealth
who requests such information provided no less than
three working days before the meeting in a manner
reasonably calculated under the circumstances to apprise the public
of the meeting information. Notices for meetings of public bodies of the
Commonwealth on which there is at least one member appointed by the Governor
shall state whether or not public comment will be received at the meeting, and,
if so, the approximate points during the meeting public comment will be
received. Requests to be notified on a continual basis shall be made at least
once a year in writing and include name, address, zip code and organization of
the requester. Notice, reasonable under the circumstance, of special
or emergency meetings shall be given contemporaneously with the notice provided
members of the public body conducting the meeting and shall be
provided in a manner reasonably calculated under the circumstances
to apprise the public of the meeting information.
Unless otherwise exempt, at least one copy of all agenda packets and materials furnished to members of a public body for a meeting shall be made available for inspection by the public at the same time such documents are furnished to the members of the public body.
Any person may photograph, film, record or otherwise reproduce any portion of a meeting required to be open. The public body conducting the meeting may adopt rules governing the placement and use of equipment necessary for broadcasting, photographing, filming or recording a meeting to prevent interference with the proceedings.
Voting by secret or written ballot in an open meeting shall be a violation of this chapter.
Minutes shall be recorded at all public meetings. However, minutes shall not be required to be taken at deliberations of (i) standing and other committees of the General Assembly, (ii) legislative interim study commissions and committees, including the Virginia Code Commission, (iii) study committees or commissions appointed by the Governor, or (iv) study commissions or study committees, or any other committees or subcommittees appointed by the governing bodies or school boards of counties, cities and towns, except where the membership of any such commission, committee or subcommittee includes a majority of the governing body of the county, city or town or school board.
§ 2.1-343.1. Electronic communication meetings.
A. It is a violation of this chapter for any political subdivision or any
governing body, authority, board, bureau, commission, district or agency of
local government to conduct a meeting wherein the public business is discussed
or transacted through telephonic, video, any
electronic or other communication means where the members are
not physically assembled. Nothing in this section shall be construed to
prohibit the use of interactive audio or video means to expand public
participation.
B. For purposes of subsections B through F of this section, "public body" means
any public body of the Commonwealth, as provided in the definitions of
"meeting" and "public body" in § 2.1-341, but excluding
shall exclude any political subdivision or any governing body,
authority, board, bureau, commission, district or agency of local government.
Such public bodies may conduct any meeting, except executive or closed meetings
held pursuant to § 2.1-344, wherein the public business is discussed or
transacted through telephonic or videoelectronic
communication means. Where a quorum of a public body of
the Commonwealth is physically assembled at one location for the purpose of
conducting a meeting authorized under this subsection, additional members of
such public body may participate in the meeting through telephonic means
provided such participation is available to the public.For purposes
of establishing a quorum, every location where a member
of the public body is physically present to discuss or transact the public
business through any electronic communication
means in a
"meeting" as defined in §
2.1-341 shall be (i) in
Virginia and (ii) open and accessible
to the public. After a quorum is established,
members of the public body who are not physically present
(i) in Virginia or (ii) at a meeting location which is open and accessible to
the public, may participate in the meeting but shall not be entitled, under any
circumstances, to vote on any matter authorizing the transaction of
any public business.
C. Notice of any meetings held pursuant to this section shall be provided
at least thirty days in advance of the date scheduled for the meeting. The
notice shall include the date, time, place and purpose for the meeting and
shall identify the location or locations for the meetingin the same
manner as required by § 2.1-343.
All locations for the meeting shall be made accessible to the
public. All persons attending the meeting at any of the
meeting locationslocation where a
member of the public body is physically present in Virginia
at a location which is open and accessible to the public
shall be afforded the same an opportunity to
address the public body as persons attending the primary or central
location. Any interruption in the telephonic or video
broadcast electronic communication of
the meeting shall result in the suspension of action at the meeting until
repairs are made and public access restored.
Thirty-day notice shall not be required for telephonic or video
Notice for electronic communication meetings continued to
(i) address an emergency situation as provided in
subsection F of this section as defined in § 2.1-341 or
to (ii) conclude the agenda of a telephonic or video
an electronic communication meeting of the public body for
which the proper notice has been given, when the date, time, place and purpose
of the continued meeting are set during the meeting prior to
adjournment, shall be made in the same manner as
required by § 2.1-343.
Public bodies conducting emergency meetings through electronic communications means shall comply with the provisions of subsection D requiring minutes, recordation, and preservation of the audio or audio/visual recording of the meeting. The basis for the emergency meeting shall be stated in the minutes.
The public body shall provide the Director of the Department of
Information Technology with notice of all public meetings
held through telephonic or video means pursuant to this
section.
D. An agenda and materials which will be distributed to members of the public
body and which have been made available to the staff of the public body in
sufficient time for duplication and forwarding to all location sites where
public access will be provided shall be made available to the public at the
time of the meeting. Minutes of all meetings held by telephonic or video
electronic communication means shall be recorded as required
by § 2.1-343. Votes taken during any meeting conducted through
telephonic or video electronic communication means shall
be recorded by name in roll-call fashion and included in the minutes. In
addition, the public body shall make an audio recording of the meeting, if
a telephonic medium an audio communication means is used,
or an audio/visual recording, if the meeting is held by
videoaudio/visual communication means. The
recording shall be preserved by the public body for a period of three years
following the date of the meeting and shall be available to the public.
E. No more than twenty-five percent of all meetings held annually by a
public body, including meetings of any ad hoc or standing committees, may be
held by telephonic or video means. AnyBy September 1 of
each year, any public body which meets by telephonic or video
electronic communication means shall file with the Director of
the Department of Information Technology by July 1 of each year
(or its successor agency) a statement identifying
report of the total number of
electronic communication meetings held during the preceding fiscal
year, the dates on which the meetings were held and, the
number and purpose of those conducted through telephonic or
video means the meetings, and the type of electronic communication
means by which the meetings were held.
F. Notwithstanding the limitations imposed by subsection E of this
section, a public body may meet by telephonic or video means as often as needed
if an emergency exists and the public body is unable to meet in regular
session. As used in this subsection "emergency" means an unforeseen
circumstance rendering the notice required by this section, or by §
2.1-343 of this chapter, impossible or impracticable and which circumstance
requires immediate action. Public bodies conducting emergency meetings through
telephonic or video means shall comply with the provisions of subsection D
requiring minutes, recordation and preservation of the audio or audio/visual
recording of the meeting. The basis for the emergency shall be stated in the
minutes.It shall be a violation of this chapter for any
public body or any member thereof
to use the provisions of this section to circumvent the
spirit or the letter of this chapter to discuss or act upon any matter over
which the public body has supervision, control, jurisdiction,
authority, or advisory powers.