Local agencies: open meetings: teleconferences.

(1) The Ralph M. Brown Act requires, with specified exceptions, that all meetings of a legislative body of a local agency be open and public and all persons be permitted to attend. The act authorizes a legislative body to use teleconferencing, subject to specified requirements, including that each teleconference location be accessible to the public and that at least a quorum of the members of the body participate from locations within the boundaries of the territory over which the local agency exercises jurisdiction. Existing law provides that, in counties selected by the Director of Health Care Services with the concurrence of the county, a special county health authority may be established in order to meet the problems of delivery of publicly assisted medical care in each county, and to demonstrate ways of promoting quality care and cost efficiency. This bill, until January 1, 2018, would provide that, notwithstanding the provisions of the act on teleconferencing, with respect to a teleconference meeting of a county health authority established in a county under specified provisions, members of a health authority who are outside the jurisdiction may be counted toward the establishment of a quorum when participating in the teleconference if at least 50% of the number of members that would establish a quorum are present within the jurisdiction and the health authority provides a teleconference number and associated access codes, if any, that allows any person to call in to participate in the meeting, and that number and access codes are identified in the notice and agenda of the meeting. (2) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.