HB 24-1303

HB 24-1303 is a Colorado bill that updates the state's Open Meetings Law for the General Assembly. It clarifies that meetings of political party caucuses related to public business must be open and subject to this law, while other types of caucus meetings are exempt. The bill also states that a series of small meetings between assembly members can't be used to avoid the law if they collectively involve enough members to make decisions. Additionally, it specifies that written electronic communications among assembly members about public business during meetings must follow these rules and could be considered violations if not properly disclosed. This bill has been signed into law, meaning its changes are now in effect for how state public bodies of the General Assembly operate.

Official Summary

The bill makes several modifications and clarifications to the application of the "Colorado Open Meetings Law" (COML) to any state public body of the general assembly. The bill clarifies that a meeting of any political party caucus, which are the caucuses associated with each major political party in each chamber of the general assembly, is subject to the provisions of the COML if the meeting relates to the public business of the general assembly and excludes any other type of caucus made up of members of the general assembly from the provisions of the COML. Additionally, the bill establishes that serial meetings, which are a series of meetings between 2 or more members of a state public body that individually do not constitute a meeting of a quorum of the body but collectively constitute a meeting of a quorum of the body, are a violation of the COML. The bill modifies the provisions of the COML concerning written electronic communication between members of a state public body of the general assembly by excluding such communication, regardless of the length of time the communication is available for, from the requirements of the COML unless the communication occurs contemporaneously between a quorum of a state public body of the general assembly during a meeting of the body and is concerning public business and unless the communication constitutes a serial meeting. In both instances, such communication is a violation of the COML. The bill clarifies that written electronic communication may be subject to the provisions of the "Colorado Open Records Act". The bill also modifies certain requirements for notice and minutes required for meetings of state public bodies of the general assembly. Notice must specify any applicable statutory provisions for the notice. Minutes must include the names of all members of the general assembly in attendance, whether their attendance was in-person, virtual, or a hybrid of both, and note if a recording of the meeting was made. (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.)