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VIRGINIA
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
ADVISORY COUNCIL
COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
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2023
Subcommittees
At its
meeting on July 27, 2023, the FOIA Council (Council) established
three subcommittees to study one bill from the 2023 Session
of the General Assembly (HB 1880, Bennett Parker), two recent
Court decisions concerning meetings, and electronic meetings
issues as described below.
1. HB 1880
Workgroup
The Council
appointed a subcommittee consisting of members Senator Locke,
Delegate Cherry, Delegate Mullin, Lola Rodriguez Perkins,
and Cullen Seltzer to study House
Bill 1880 (2023, Bennett Parker). During the 2023 Session
the bill was laid on the table by the House Counties, Cities
and Towns Committee. The bill is summarized as follows:
- Localities;
record of legal settlement or judgment; disclosure.
Requires localities to retain a public record of certain
legal settlements and judgments and requires the record
of such amount to be subject to disclosure if requested
pursuant to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act.
Meetings
Scheduled:
Tuesday,
September 5, at 1:00 p.m., Senate Subcommittee Room 1, Pocahontas
Building, Richmond, Virginia
Agenda
Summary
Meeting
video
Wednesday,
November 22, at 9:00 a.m., South Subcommittee Room #210, General
Assembly BuildingRichmond, Virginia
Agenda
Summary
Michelle Gowdy,
Virginia Municipal League Comments
2. Meetings Issues Subcommittee
The Council
appointed a subcommittee consisting of members Delegate Cherry,
William Coleburn, Lola Rodriguez Perkins, Bruce Potter, and
Cullen Seltzer to study recent decisions of the Supreme Court
of Virginia with the goal to provide guidance to public bodies
on how best to comply with the Supreme Court's rulings. The
decisions are summarized as follows:
- Berry
v. Bd. of Supervisors of Fairfax County
(March 23, 2023). The Supreme Court held that a zoning
ordinance adopted by the County at an electronic meeting
conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic was void ab initio
because the meeting failed to comply with FOIA's open meetings
requirements. Note that the meeting at issue was conducted
under the electronic meetings language in the State Budget
(2020-2022 State Budget Item 4-0.01(g)), not under the provisions
in FOIA regarding electronic meetings during a declared
state of emergency (Code § 2.2-3708.2). A notice of
rehearing, petition for rehearing, and amicus briefs have
been filed in the case.
- Gloss
v. Wheeler
(May 18, 2023). The Supreme Court ruled that five members
of a county board of supervisors held an improper meeting
in violation of FOIA under the facts of the case when they
met with police officials and others in regard to protests
that were held in the county concerning the death of George
Floyd in Minnesota in 2020. The Supreme Court held that
in the context of public meetings, "for a topic to
constitute public business it must not just be something
that conceptually could at some point come before a public
body, but rather, the topic must be something that is either
before the public body or is likely to come before the body
in the foreseeable future."
Meetings
Scheduled:
Wednesday,
September 6, at 1:00 p.m., Senate Subcommittee Room 1, Pocahontas
Building, Richmond, Virginia
Agenda
Summary
Meeting
video
Wednesday,
November 22, at 10:00 a.m., South Subcommittee Room #210,
General Assembly Building, Richmond, Virginia
Agenda
Summary
LD 24100963 (Seltzer;
proceedings for enforcement)
LD 24100975 (staff;
statute of limitations)
LD 24100965 (staff;
definition of "meeting")
LD 24101428 (SA draft)
Kelly
Lackey Public Comments
Martin
Crim Public Comments
Andrew
McRoberts Public Comments
3. Electronic Meetings Subcommittee
In response
to public comment, the Council appointed a subcommittee consisting
of members Senator Locke, Bruce Potter, and Cullen Seltzer
to study issues regarding the conduct of electronic meetings,
particularly whether there should be additional opportunities
for members of public bodies with disabilities to use electronic
means to participate.
Meetings
Scheduled:
Thursday,
November 9, at 1:00 p.m., House Room 1, Capitol Building,
Richmond, Virginia
Agenda
Summary
VCOG Handout
Dr.
H. Alan Seibert Comments
April
Breslaw Comments
Joan
McDermott Comments
Claire
Jacobsen Comments
Cynthia
Schneider Comments
Kathie
Hoekstra Comments
Joyce
Wenger Comments
Jessica
Mott Comments
Nancy
Morgan Comments
Harriet
Hirsch Comments
Anne
M.C. Hermann Comments
Michael
Schuster Comments
Robert
Eiffert Comments
Terri
Lynch Comments
Marta
Schantz Comments
Carol
Paquette Comments
Gerri
Wallace Comments
Donelle
Sawyer Comments
Mary-Jane
Atwater Comments
Jared
Calfee, AARP Virginia Comments
Lucy
Beadnell, Arc of Northern Virginia Comments
Joan
Porte, VA League of Women Voters Comments
Nick
Clemente, Northern VA Chamber of Commerce Comments
Ben Cullop
Comments
Conner
Cummings Comments
Virginia Press
Association Comments
Sarah
Graham Taylor Comments
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