Remote Meeting Extension For MA Local Boards Signed Into Law

MASSACHUSETTS — Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito stepped in for Gov. Charlie Baker Saturday, signing legislation to extend remote local government meeting authorizations through March of next year.

On July 16, Polito acted as governor and signed the bill that both the House and Senate passed on Thursday, extending accommodations from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, as Gov. Charlie Baker was out of state.

Now, cities and towns throughout the Commonwealth have the option to hold public meetings either remotely or in a hybrid format as they have been since March 2020.

The extension of remote meeting options had expired on July 15, and if nothing had been done, all public meetings would have been required to take place in person in locations that are open and accessible to the public with at least one quorum of the public body in attendance.

The Senate included a remote meeting extension option in its fiscal 2023 state budget back in May, but as the July 15 expiration approached, the Senate advanced the language as a standalone bill on July 5, according to the Massachusetts Municipal Association.

The House passed their version of an extension bill on July 7, but that version included language that would have made a permanent mandate for remote access to all public meetings, aside from those in executive session, with a provision requiring remote participation by the public if public participation is allowed or required at the meeting. That mandate would have gone into effect on April 1, 2023.

According to the MMA, officials worked with lawmakers to clarify that though the House had good intentions with its bill, the unfunded mandate would have been a struggle for smaller cities and towns when it came to technology, finances, and practicality - which brought the Legislature to remove the mandate from the approved bill.

The MMA says they are working to find a permanent solution that gives municipalities the flexibility and funding they need to properly expand participation and engagement through remote and hybrid meetings.