§ 103 — Open meetings and executive sessions

New York § 103

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law PBO: Public Officers
• Art. 7: Open Meetings Law

Text

§ 103. Open meetings and executive sessions. (a) Every meeting of a\npublic body shall be open to the general public, except that an\nexecutive session of such body may be called and business transacted\nthereat in accordance with section ninety-five of this article.\n (b) Public bodies shall make or cause to be made all reasonable\nefforts to ensure that meetings are held in facilities that permit\nbarrier-free physical access to the physically handicapped, as defined\nin subdivision five of section fifty of the public buildings law.\n * (c) A public body shall provide an opportunity for the public to\nattend, listen and observe meetings in at least one physical location at\nwhich a member participates.\n * NB Effective until July 1, 2026\n * (c) A public body that uses videoconferencing to conduct its\nmeetings shall provide an opportunity for the public to attend, listen\nand observe at any site at which a member participates.\n * NB Effective July 1, 2026\n * (d) Public bodies shall make or cause to be made all reasonable\nefforts to ensure that meetings are held in an appropriate facility\nwhich can adequately accommodate members of the public who wish to\nattend such meetings.\n * NB There are 2 sub (d)'s\n * (d) 1. Any meeting of a public body that is open to the public shall\nbe open to being photographed, broadcast, webcast, or otherwise recorded\nand/or transmitted by audio or video means. As used herein the term\n"broadcast" shall also include the transmission of signals by cable.\n 2. A public body may adopt rules, consistent with recommendations from\nthe committee on open government, reasonably governing the location of\nequipment and personnel used to photograph, broadcast, webcast, or\notherwise record a meeting so as to conduct its proceedings in an\norderly manner. Such rules shall be conspicuously posted during meetings\nand written copies shall be provided upon request to those in\nattendance.\n * NB There are 2 sub (d)'s\n (e) Agency records available to the public pursuant to article six of\nthis chapter, as well as any proposed resolution, law, rule, regulation,\npolicy or any amendment thereto, that is scheduled to be the subject of\ndiscussion by a public body during an open meeting shall be made\navailable, upon request therefor, to the extent practicable at least\ntwenty-four hours prior to the meeting during which the records will be\ndiscussed. Copies of such records may be made available for a reasonable\nfee, determined in the same manner as provided therefor in article six\nof this chapter. If the agency in which a public body functions\nmaintains a regularly and routinely updated website and utilizes a high\nspeed internet connection, such records shall be posted on the website\nto the extent practicable at least twenty-four hours prior to the\nmeeting. An agency may, but shall not be required to, expend additional\nmoneys to implement the provisions of this subdivision.\n (f) Open meetings of an agency or authority shall be, to the extent\npracticable and within available funds, broadcast to the public and\nmaintained as records of the agency or authority. If the agency or\nauthority maintains a website and utilizes a high speed internet\nconnection, such open meeting shall be, to the extent practicable and\nwithin available funds, streamed on such website in real-time, and\nposted on such website within and for a reasonable time after the\nmeeting. For the purposes of this subdivision, the term "agency" shall\nmean only a state department, board, bureau, division, council or office\nand any public corporation the majority of whose members are appointed\nby the governor. For purposes of this subdivision, the term "authority"\nshall mean a public authority or public benefit corporation created by\nor existing under any state law, at least one of whose members is\nappointed by the governor (including any subsidiaries of such public\nauthority or public benefit corporation), other than an interstate or\ninternational authority or public benefit corporation.\n