Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following:

Amend the bill by inserting after the enacting clause and before section 1 the following:

Amend the bill by inserting after section 7 the following:

Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or section number to read consecutively.

summary

This amendment designates the contents of the bill as Part A. The amendment adds Parts B and C. Part B of the amendment does the following.

It clarifies when members of public bodies may participate remotely in public proceedings of those bodies. It prohibits a body subject to the Freedom of Access Act from allowing its members to participate in its public proceedings through telephonic, video, electronic or other similar means of communication unless the body has adopted a written policy that authorizes remote participation in a manner that allows all members to simultaneously hear and speak to each other during the public proceeding and allows members of the public attending the public proceeding at the location identified in the meeting notice to hear all members of the body.

It prohibits remote participation in executive session. It also prohibits a member who is participating remotely in a proceeding from voting on an issue that was discussed in executive session that immediately preceded the vote in the public proceeding.

It requires a quorum of the body to be physically present at the location identified in the meeting notice unless immediate action is imperative and physical presence of a quorum is not reasonably practicable within the period of time requiring action, or, for public bodies that consist of 3 or fewer members, at least one member of the public body must be physically present at the location identified in the meeting notice.

It requires that each member of a public body subject to the Freedom of Access Act be physically present in at least one public proceeding each year.

It requires that each member participating remotely identify all persons present at the remote location, that all votes be taken by roll call and that members participating remotely receive documents or other materials presented or discussed at the public proceeding in advance or when made available at the meeting, if the technology is available. The amendment prohibits members who are not physically present at the meeting location from participating and voting in adjudicatory proceedings.

It requires that a state public body adopt its remote participation policy as a major substantive rule under the Maine Administrative Procedure Act.

It authorizes municipalities and counties to impose stricter requirements than are provided in this amendment and allows municipalities and counties to prohibit the use of remote participation by any public body under their jurisdictions. The stricter requirements or the prohibition must be imposed through the adoption of an ordinance by the municipality or the county.

It provides that an elected public body may adopt a remote participation policy only after the constituency of the elected public body has voted to authorize the body to adopt the policy.

It prohibits the Legislature from allowing its members to participate in its public proceedings through telephonic, video, electronic or other similar means of communication, but allows the Finance Authority of Maine, the Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices, the Maine Health and Higher Educational Facilities Authority, the Maine State Housing Authority, the Maine Municipal Bond Bank, the Emergency Medical Services' Board and the Workers' Compensation Board to continue allowing remote participation at their public proceedings as currently authorized in law.

Part C of the amendment amends the Freedom of Access Act to require the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over judiciary matters to conduct a review of any proposed statutory authorization of remote participation or change in accessibility with respect to public proceedings.