Bill > H2715

This bill aims to strengthen the open meeting law, which requires public bodies to conduct their business in public. It removes a provision that defined "intentional violation" and modifies how the Attorney General determines responsibility for violations. The bill also changes the available actions for violations, allowing for the reprimanding of public body members, which would become a public record, and adds the ability to invalidate actions taken at improperly held meetings if a complaint is filed within twenty-one days of the action being made public. Furthermore, it allows for orders to make meeting records public, reinstate employees wrongly discharged, and for public bodies to reimburse voters for attorney fees and court costs in certain cases. The bill also introduces civil fines for public bodies and individual members who violate the law, with limitations on penalties for those who opposed the violating action and a prohibition on public funds being used to pay individual fines. Finally, it adds a defense for public bodies or their members if they acted in good faith based on the advice of their legal counsel.