Public meetings: definition.

(1) The Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act requires, with specified exceptions, that all meetings of a state body be open and public and all persons be permitted to attend any meeting of a state body. The act defines "meeting" for the purposes of the act and, with the exception of teleconferencing, prohibits any use of direct communication, personal intermediaries, or technological devices employed by a majority of the members of the state body to develop a collective concurrence as to action to be taken on an item by the members of the state body. Existing law specifies the contacts, conferences, and other types of gatherings that are excluded from this prohibition. This bill would repeal that prohibition regarding the use of those communications or devices to develop a collective concurrence. The bill would instead prohibit a majority of the members of a state body from using a series of communications of any kind, directly or through intermediaries, to discuss, deliberate, or take action on any item of business that is within the subject matter of the state body. The bill would additionally exclude from that prohibition an employee or official of a state agency engaging in a separate conversation or communication with a member of a legislative body for the propose of answering questions or providing information, as specified. (2) The act provides that certain activities do not apply to the prohibitions of the act, including an individual contact or conversation that is between a member of a state body and any other person. This bill would specify that the individual contact or conversation between a member of a state body and any other person which is excluded from those prohibitions not otherwise violate the prohibition that would be imposed by this bill.