Bill > A549

This bill mandates that municipal governing bodies, which are local government councils or boards responsible for a town or city, must provide electronic notice of their public meetings through the Internet, in addition to existing notice requirements under the "Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act." This electronic notice must include any documents relevant to the meeting's discussions, such as drafts that have been considered, unless those documents are confidential under the open public records act, are related to discussions where the public is excluded, or if releasing them before formal action would significantly harm the municipality as advised by legal counsel. However, a municipal governing body can hold a meeting without this electronic notice if three-quarters of the members present vote to do so in urgent situations where delaying the meeting would cause substantial public harm, provided the meeting is limited to those urgent matters, electronic notice is given as soon as possible, and the need for the meeting couldn't have been foreseen. The bill also establishes a process for municipalities to seek reimbursement from the Department of the Treasury for any extra costs incurred in complying with these new electronic notice requirements.

Government Affairs

https://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bill-search/2026/A549