BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod, Chair
BILL NO: SB 343 HEARING: 4/18/07
AUTHOR: Negrete McLeod FISCAL: No
VERSION: 4/9/07 CONSULTANT:
Weinberger
BROWN ACT AND AGENDA MATERIALS
Background and Existing Law
The Ralph M. Brown Act requires the meetings of local
governments' legislative bodies to be "open and public,"
thereby ensuring people's access to information so that
they may retain control over the public agencies that serve
them.
The Brown Act requires local agencies to post an agenda for
a regular meeting of a local legislative body at least 72
hours before the meeting in a location that is freely
accessible to members of the public. The act generally
prohibits any action or discussion of items not on the
posted agenda, with specified exceptions.
Except for certain exempt documents, any writings
distributed to a majority of the legislative body are
public records and must be made available upon request
without delay. Any writings prepared by the local agency
in connection with a matter subject to discussion or
consideration at a public meeting must be made available
for public inspection at the meeting.
Some local agencies' staff-produced background materials
relating to agenda items are not distributed until the day
on which the local legislative body considers those items.
On occasion, staff reports containing complex or unforeseen
information are distributed just moments before a
legislative body considers a related agenda item, leaving
little time for anyone to review such writings. SB 343's
sponsors want the Legislature to require that writings
included in a regular meeting agenda packet be available to
the public at least 72 hours before the meeting.
Proposed Law
SB 343 -- 4/9/07 -- Page 2
Senate Bill 343 prohibits, on and after July 1, 2008, local
legislative bodies from discussing or acting upon any
agenda item in an open and public regular meeting unless
the writings related to that item in the agenda packet are
made available to the public no later than the date the
agency posts the agenda that includes that item.
Comments
1. From translucent to transparent . The last-minute
release of agenda packet materials leaves citizens feeling
blindsided by their governments, impedes informed debate,
and produces unnecessary costs and delays when new
information prompts the continuation of agenda items to
future meetings. The deliberations and decisions of local
legislative bodies are not truly transparent if the public
lacks sufficient access to the writings that shape those
deliberations and actions. By guaranteeing a minimum
period of time to read, consider, and react to the contents
of local agencies' regular meeting agenda packets, SB 343
promotes greater public transparency, thereby furthering
the fundamental purpose of the Brown Act.
2. Too much pain, too little gain . In response to
anecdotal complaints about last-minute releases of agenda
packets, SB 343 imposes an overly severe new deadline on
local governments. Most local agencies try to make agendas
and related materials available to the public as soon as
possible. However, the preparation of agendas and agenda
packets is a complex process, particularly in jurisdictions
in which multiple local legislative bodies hold frequent
meetings. Sometimes it's impossible for staff to compile a
complete agenda packet 72 hours before a meeting. Local
governments worry that an unconditional 72-hour deadline on
agenda packets will result in widespread delays if
background materials aren't ready in time. More generally,
local governments are concerned that such a deadline would
disrupt their operations by placing unnecessary strain on
the already complex task of managing the flow of paper and
information.
3. Not transparent enough ? SB 343 may take an
insufficient step towards greater local government
SB 343 -- 4/9/07 -- Page 3
transparency. For example, a local legislative body's
actions are not influenced exclusively by information
contained in an agenda packet, or even by information
produced by a local agency. SB 343 may not increase public
access to some written materials that are submitted to
local decision-makers by private third parties. The
Committee may wish to consider whether SB 343 should be
amended to ensure that the public has sufficient access to
the full range of written materials that are made available
to members of local legislative bodies to inform their
consideration of agenda items.
4. Do no harm . While there may be agreement on the
principle of making written agenda materials available soon
enough to allow for informed consideration of issues, the
challenge lies in implementing this principle without
creating impediments for local governments. For example,
many local agencies currently post their regular meeting
agendas far in advance of the 72-hour Brown Act deadline.
Requiring that agenda packet materials be made available at
the same time that the agenda is posted could have the
unintended consequence of preventing those agencies from
posting their agendas as far in advance. Similarly,
agencies faced with meeting an agenda packet deadline could
respond by restricting the amount of information, or types
of background materials, that they would otherwise include
in a packet. The Committee may wish to consider whether SB
343 should be amended to help guide local compliance with
an agenda packet deadline.
5. A packet by any other name . SB 343 applies to writings
included in an "agenda packet," a term used in the Brown
Act without definition. Although there is a general
understanding of what constitutes an "agenda packet," the
absence of a statutory definition may confound local
agencies' efforts to comply with SB 343 and could allow
local agencies to dodge SB 343's requirements by
distributing documents under a different name. The
Committee may wish to consider whether the term "agenda
packet" should be defined to ensure that SB 343 applies to
any document that an agency's staff compiles and
distributes to its decision-makers that is comprised of
writings directly pertaining to items to be considered at a
meeting of the agency's legislative body.
SB 343 -- 4/9/07 -- Page 4
6. Special exception ? By applying only to regular
meetings of local legislative bodies, SB 343 may have the
unintended consequence of inviting local agencies to call
more special meetings, as permitted under the Brown Act.
Special meetings may be called at least 24 hours before a
meeting by the presiding officer, or a majority, of a local
legislative body, subject to specified public notice
requirements and additional conditions. If SB 343 becomes
law, legislators may wish to remain vigilant to determine
whether local governments use special meetings to avoid the
requirements that apply regular meetings' written agenda
materials. The Committee may wish to consider whether SB
343 should be amended to prevent the misuse of special
meetings as a loophole.
7. No mandate . Because Legislative Counsel says that SB
343 does not create a new state-mandated local program, the
bill does not go to the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Support and Opposition (4/12/07)
Support : California Association of Realtors, American
Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees,
Orange County Association of Realtors.
Opposition : Unknown.