DE Under 3: Behind the Scenes of EEOC’s Full Commission Hearing
Government in the Virtual World: A Look at Public Meetings and Hearings
Ethics Laws and the Importance of Transparency for Public Officials
On March 28, 2025, Mass. Governor Maura Healy signed an emergency law extending the COVID-19 remote and hybrid meeting authorizations for public meetings of local boards and committees until June 30, 2027. The law, Chapter 2...more
On October 8, 2023, Assembly Bill 557 (“AB 557”) sponsored by California Special Districts Association (CSDA) and introduced by Assembly Member Gregg Hart (D-37) was signed into law. This bill updates and amends the...more
The Legislature passed three bills in 2022 that made changes to the Ralph M. Brown Act (“Brown Act”) effective January 1, 2023, summarized below. The Brown Act requires meetings of a local public agency’s governing body to be...more
Governor Inslee’s March 24, 2022 signing of House Bill 1329 marks the introduction of changes to the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), the focus of which concerns public meetings’ accessibility and participation in the same....more
Two New Bills Could Ease California’s Teleconferencing Restrictions for the Long-Term - As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the California Legislature previously passed AB 361 to allow for streamlined teleconferencing...more
Below is Alston & Bird’s Health Care Week in Review, which provides a synopsis of the latest news in healthcare regulations, notices, and guidance; federal legislation and congressional committee action; reports, studies, and...more
On February 17, 2022, Governor DeWine signed House Bill 51 into law. House Bill 51 includes an uncodified provision authorizing public meetings to be held by teleconference, video conference or other similar electronic...more
On February 4, 2022, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel opined that the Americans with Disabilities Act (the "ADA") requires public bodies to afford an individual with a disability a reasonable accommodation to participate...more
Compliance with the Open Meetings Law is an ongoing, ever-present obligation for all North Carolina public boards. The advent of Governor Cooper’s COVID-19 State of Emergency declaration prompted additional open meetings...more
The virtual public meeting option available last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic will return with the recent passage of Sub HB 51. The Ohio Open Meetings Act requires public bodies, including Boards of Education,...more
On September 2, 2021, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation (S.50001/A.40001), which includes a number of statutory protections and other emergency public health measures adopted in response to the recent increase in the...more
At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 16, 2020, at the Attorney General’s request, Governor Greg Abbott utilized Section 418.016 of the Government Code to suspend certain requirements of the Texas Open Meetings Act...more
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rhode Island public bodies have been authorized to meet remotely pursuant to Executive Orders issued by the Rhode Island Governor’s Office...more
In March 2020, in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-29-20, suspending open public meeting requirements under the Brown Act and Bagley-Keene Act thereby allowing state and...more
As of July 1, 2021, public entities must take care to conduct their public meetings and public business in-person, as was the norm prior to the COVID-19 pandemic... ...more
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the work of public entities had to continue. Amended Substitute House Bill 197 made that possible, by modifying the requirements of R.C. 121.22 to permit public bodies to meet by...more
In response to public agencies’ urgent need to adapt to the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, in March 2020, California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-29-20 (amending in part Executive Order N-25-20) to...more
On June 11, 2021, Governor Newsom signed Executive Order N-08-21 (the “Order”) that establishes September 30, 2021, as the end date for COVID-19 pandemic-related suspensions for (1) deadlines for filing, noticing, and posting...more
Unbelievably, it was March 17, 2020, when Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-29-20 (amending Executive Order N-25-20 in part), which allows local or state legislative bodies to hold meetings via teleconference and...more
The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) held a public stakeholder meeting on May 19 to discuss its Whistleblower Protection Program and solicit feedback from interested individuals on...more
Three New Bills Could Make Permanent Changes to Public Meetings - As we conclude a full year of virtual meetings, the use of “Zoom” and other virtual meeting applications has become so commonplace that it might be easy to...more
On December 23, 2020, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed into law Senate Bill 1246, extending the authority for public bodies to conduct electronic "virtual" meetings for any reason through March 31, 2021. The law, now...more
The NRC held a public meeting with industry on November 2 to discuss approaches for performing supplier oversight during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Although utilities generally audit their suppliers every 36 months,...more
On November 19, 2020, the Ohio General Assembly passed Substitute House Bill 404, which extends the ability to hold virtual public meetings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic beyond the previous December 1, 2020, deadline,...more