Walk It Through: The Public Meeting
Notice 48 hours ahead without the weekend, a recording after telling the chair, and the chair's permission to speak.
A select board meeting is set for Monday evening, and the resident looks for the notice on Saturday.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One select board meeting. The purposes for which an executive session may be held, the complaint process through the attorney general, remote participation, and the remedies for a violation are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Meeting noticeNotice of every meeting of a public body, posted at least 48 hours before it, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, with the date, time and place and the topics the chair reasonably anticipates will be discussed.
- Recording an open sessionAfter notifying the chair, any person may make a video or audio recording of an open session, or transmit it through any medium, subject to the chair's reasonable requirements on the number, placement and operation of equipment.