Massachusetts lawmakers may require hybrid meetings for most public boards

BOSTON - First devised as an emergency measure that allowed government to continue to function amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the executive order allowing meetings to be held virtually could soon turn into a requirement that most governmental meetings be held in person with remote access available.

Massachusetts legislators heard from members and proponents of several filed bills that would require nearly all governmental bodies to meet in hybrid form.

Ensuring access, public participation is key

“This is a very important piece of legislation,” said Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition. Two of the eight bills filed addressing the issue of modernizing access to public meetings also address the need to allow for public participation in meetings.

“Public participation in meetings is key,” Silverman said.

Proponents told the Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight on Thursday that participation levels in meetings from municipal boards of adjustment to state committee hearings have increased significantly.

According to Gavi Wolfe, legislative director for the American Civil Liberties Union Massachusetts, attendance at the Salem City Council meetings rose by 700% during the pandemic. In its conversations with municipal officials across the state, ACLU researchers learned that all municipalities that offer hybrid access, large and small, have seen an increase in the numbers of people tuning in to public meetings.

“Now that we’ve experienced the benefits of hybrid public meetings, we cannot go back,” Wolfe said in his comments before the committee. “And we cannot accept uneven access, either.”

Bill would make hybrid meetings required

The proposed legislation requiring all public elected and appointed governmental, regulatory bodies to hold meetings both in-person and online would also allow some lead time for governing bodies to accommodate the measure.

The companion bills filed by Sen. Jason Lewis, D-Winchester (S.2024), and Rep. Denise Garlick, D-Needham (H.3040), also provide state funds for the purchase and installation of the necessary technology to ensure compliance. The measures stipulate that all meetings be offered free of cost or need to subscribe to a service or provider.

To ensure all have access to the meetings, some residents may find it challenging to attend in person due to work schedules, caretaker responsibilities or even lack of access to the actual meeting location. Others would find it challenging to attend virtually due to technological issues. To address discrepancies, the bills require that one-third of the members of a governmental body be present in person, while state bodies need only have one member attend physically in person.

Challenges to access can happen both ways, Silverman said. “Hybrid meetings give residents the freedom to choose.”

Healey creates new tech board

In the spirit of advancing accessibility to government, Gov. Maura Healey created the Digital Accessibility and Equity Governance Board. The body was tasked with the mission to strengthen and advance digital accessibility and equity within the commonwealth.

In creating the board, Healey established a new position of chief information technology accessibility officer within the Executive Office of Technology Services and Security. That official will work with the secretary of the office, Jason Snyder, to ensure all digital applications to be fully functional and accessible for everyone.

Healey expects the Digital Accessibility and Equity Program will ensure that digital accessibility and equity standards are aligned across the executive department through ongoing monitoring, support for testing, and internal reporting.

Not a question of municipal choice, rather a requirement

Many communities already hold all governmental meetings in hybrid form; the proposed bills seek to ensure that every community in the state does so and not leave the issue for local elected officials to decide.

“Accessing local democracy shouldn’t hinge on what town or city one lives in,” Wolfe said, urging the state Legislature to adopt the measures swiftly and ensure that “all members of the public can fully engage with their state and local government.”

Sen. Jake Oliveira, D-Ludlow, the author of a similar bill, told the committee that the measure would benefit the state’s more rural regions, where collaborative governing boards are common. These collaborative board unite leaders from different communities, one school board stretches across three counties.

Driving distances to a common meeting area, Oliveira said, can be daunting and obtaining a quorum can be difficult.

“People can drive for more than an hour to attend these meetings,” Oliveira said, explaining that holding meetings remotely is a commonsense solution and opens meetings to the public to witness and participate. “This is essential for good governance.”

Backers include organizations fighting to maintain civil liberties

The bill is backed by the ACLU of Massachusetts, Boston Center for Independent Living, Common Cause Massachusetts, Disability Law Center, League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association, MASSPIRG, New England First Amendment Coalition and New England Newspaper & Press Association.Silverman said the First Amendment organization saw the handwriting on the wall pre-pandemic. “We knew it was in the future, saw the technology was there.”

The pandemic just propelled government bodies into the future.

“In the past, people had to attend governmental meetings in person,” Silverman said, noting that it was not an equitable arrangement. That the technology was available and the urgent need for access ensured the pieces were put in place for hybrid meetings that guaranteed public access.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Hybrid may be on the agenda for all Massachusetts governmental bodies