When A Meeting Is Public

In Wisconsin, every meeting of a governmental body is preceded by public notice and held in open session. All discussion is held, and all action of any kind, formal or informal, is initiated, deliberated and acted on, only in open session, except where the closed session section allows.

• §Wis. Stat. 19.83

Notice of every meeting gives the time, date, place and subject matter, including what is intended for any contemplated closed session, in a form reasonably likely to inform the public and the news media. It is given at least 24 hours before the meeting begins, unless for good cause that is impossible or impractical, and even then never less than 2 hours in advance.

• §Wis. Stat. 19.84

• The presiding officer gives notice to the public, to news media that have filed a written request, and to the official newspaper or a news medium likely to give notice in the area.
• Notice to the public is by posting in at least 3 public places, by posting in at least one public place and on the body's Internet site, or by paid publication.
• Separate notice is given for each meeting, at a time reasonably close to it.
• The notice may provide for a period of public comment, and during it the body may discuss any matter the public raises.

• §Wis. Stat. 19.83
• §Wis. Stat. 19.84

The purposes for which a closed session may be held, the rules for a subunit meeting during a parent body's meeting, and the penalties and remedies for a violation are in the sections and in other sections of the subchapter and are not reproduced in full here. Whether a particular gathering was a meeting of a governmental body is a question for a court and for a licensed Wisconsin attorney.

• §Wis. Stat. 19.83
• §Wis. Stat. 19.84