Open Meetings Act - Enhanced Requirements for Educational Entities and Retention Requirements

HB 973 amends Maryland's Open Meetings Act to apply enhanced transparency requirements to educational entities, including the Maryland State Department of Education, the Accountability and Implementation Board, and county school boards. The bill requires these entities to publish meeting agendas 48 hours in advance (or as soon as practicable for emergencies), provide minutes within 2 business days, and offer live video streaming of open sessions. It also mandates retaining meeting minutes for 15 years and complete video recordings for 1 year (or 5 years for Vision Zero meetings). These changes aim to increase public access to educational governance processes while specifying retention timelines for records.