Bill Text: NJ A4930 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires board of education to adopt policy permitting remote attendance by board member in certain circumstances.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-10-21 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Education Committee [A4930 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-A4930-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman ROSAURA "ROSY" BAGOLIE
District 27 (Essex and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires board of education to adopt policy permitting remote attendance by board member in certain circumstances.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning board of education meetings and supplementing chapter 10 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. A board of education shall adopt a policy authorizing a member of the board of education to attend and participate in a meeting of the board remotely using virtual or electronic means, if extenuating circumstances exist which prevent the member from attending the meeting in-person.
b. The policy established pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall, at minimum:
(1) describe the extenuating circumstances in which a member of the board is permitted to attend the meeting remotely, which circumstances shall include, but not be limited to: accommodating a medical condition, illness, or disability; to provide childcare for the member's child; or to meet obligations of the member's employment;
(2) require a request for remote attendance to be made in advance of the meeting and be approved by the president of the board;
(3) allow for the members of the public and other board members to hear the comments made by the board member attending remotely and for the board member attending remotely to hear comments made by members of the public and other board members;
(4) detail the permitted methods by which a board member may attend remotely, which methods may include telephone, video-conferencing, or other electronic means;
(5) establish procedures to ensure that a board member attending remotely has real-time access to any materials that are presented and made available to board members attending the meeting in-person; and
(6) establish a maximum number of meetings for which a board member may attend virtually, which shall not exceed three consecutive meetings.
c. A member of a board of education attending a meeting of the board remotely pursuant to a policy established under subsection a. of this section shall be considered present for the purposes of establishing a quorum.
d. A member of a board of education attending a meeting of the board remotely shall be permitted to attend and participate in an executive or closed session meeting of the board, provided that:
(1) the board member is attending the executive or closed session without the presence of any non-board members;
(2) the executive or closed session utilizes remote access methods that do not allow non-board members to hear or see the proceedings; and
(3) no portion of the proceedings of the executive or closed session is recorded, photographed, or otherwise reproduced in a visual or audio format.
e. A board of education shall acquire adequate technology and communications equipment to effectuate the purposes of this section.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires a board of education to adopt a policy authorizing a member of the board of education to attend and participate in a meeting of the board remotely using virtual or electronic means. Pursuant to the bill, the policy may only permit a board member to remotely attend a board meeting if extenuating circumstances exist which prevent the member from attending the meeting in-person.
The policy is to: (1) describe the extenuating circumstances in which a member of the board is permitted to attend the meeting remotely, including accommodating a medical condition, illness, or disability; (2) require a request for remote attendance to be made in advance of the meeting and be approved by the board president; (3) allow for the members of the public and other board members to hear the comments made by the board member attending remotely and for the board member to hear comments made by members of the public and other board members; (4) detail the permitted methods by which a member of the board may attend remotely which may include telephone, video-conferencing, or other electronic means; (5) establish procedures to ensure that a member of the board attending remotely has real-time access to any materials that are presented and available to members of the board attending the meeting in-person; and (6) establish a maximum number of meetings for which a member may attend virtually, which is prohibited from exceeding three consecutive meetings.
The bill stipulates that a member attending the meeting remotely pursuant to the policy established under the bill is to be considered present for the purposes of establishing a quorum. The bill also permits a member attending remotely to attend and participate in an executive or closed session of the board provided that certain conditions are met.
Finally, the bill requires a board of education to acquire adequate technology and communications equipment to effectuate the purposes of the bill.
