When A Meeting Is Public
65 Pa.C.S. 704 — deliberation and action in the open, and comment before a vote
In Pennsylvania, official action and deliberations by a quorum of the members of an agency take place at a meeting open to the public, unless the meeting is closed under the chapter's exceptions for open meetings, executive sessions or General Assembly meetings.
The board or council of a political subdivision, or of an authority one created, provides a reasonable opportunity at each advertised regular and special meeting for residents or taxpayers to comment on matters of concern, official action or deliberation that are or may be before it, before it takes official action. It may take all comment at the beginning of the meeting, and where there is not enough time it may defer comment to the next regular meeting or to a special meeting held before it.
Any person may object, at any time, at any meeting. Any person has the right to raise an objection at any time to a perceived violation of the chapter at any meeting of a board or council of a political subdivision or of an authority it created.
- Where a board has complied with the comment rule, a specific action is not voided solely because there was no comment on it.
- A board that, before January 1, 1993, held special meetings solely for public comment ahead of its advertised regular meetings is exempt from the comment rule.
What an executive session may cover, the notice the chapter requires, and when business transacted at an unauthorized meeting is void are in other sections of the chapter and are not reproduced here. Whether a particular gathering was a meeting of an agency is a question for a court and for a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.
Sources for this section (2)
- 65 Pa.C.S. 704 — Open meetings
- 65 Pa.C.S. 710.1 — Public participation
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Pennsylvania attorney.