Brown Act Basics
The Brown Act provision that permits teleconferenced meetings without regard for the "traditional teleconference" requirements in the Brown Act.
What are the 2022 teleconference amendments?
What is the safe harbor agenda language?
All documents related to District business prepared, owned, used, or retained by the District regardless of how stored.
What is a public record?
There is no required format for requesting documents, though we can ask them to reduce the request to writing, we cannot require it.
How must a requestor ask for documents?
This type of conduct may ultimately result in removal from a public meeting.
What is behavior that disturbs, impedes, or renders infeasible the order of the meeting?
(Also acceptable: disorderly conduct.)
The Brown Act applies to this body in community college districts.
What is a Board of Trustees?
The Act allows closed sessions when discussing this type of litigation.
What is pending or anticipated litigation?
The response from the District that tells a requestor whether we need clarification, whether we claim an exemption, and whether we will produce the requested documents.
What is the 10 day response?
A party may file this type of action if they believe that they will be negatively affected by the disclosure of that confidential document by a public agency through a CPRA request.
What is a "reverse-CPRA" action?
If a court determines that a record was improperly held, it may do this.
What is award attorneys fees and court costs?
The Act requires that meeting agendas be posted this many hours in advance of a regular meeting.
What is 72?
Set compensation in closed session (except for a reduction in compensation due to discipline).
What is something you can never do in closed session.
By inspecting or obtaining copies of requested documents.
How do requestors obtain information?
The District must provide assistance in order for the requester to make a focused and effective request that reasonably describes an identifiable record. This includes assisting the requestor to identify records and info that are responsive.
What are types of assistance a District must give a requestor?
What happens when a public agency discloses a record that is exempt from disclosure.
What is a waiver of the exemption?
Agendas for regular meetings are complete when they contain these three items.
What are (1) the time and place of the meeting, (2) a brief general description of each item to be discussed, and (3) opportunity for public comment?
The public has the right to do this at a meeting of the District's BOT.
What is "attend and participate"?
Where unusual circumstances exist, the agency may extend the 10-day period by written notice from the head of the agency and including the reasons for the extension and the date on which the agency expects to forward a determination, which cannot be more than 14 days.
What is the 14-day extension of time to respond?
How a records requester enforces their request if the District refuses to disclose records.
What is a legal action in civil court to compel the disclosure of records?
A willful Brown Act violation can result in these personal consequences for Trustees.
What are fines and possible criminal penalties?
The Brown Act applies to any gathering where a majority of this group hear, discuss or deliberate on matters within its subject matter jurisdiction.
What is the governing board?
Real estate negotiations in closed session are limited to discussions about only these items.
What are price and terms of payment?
If the District denies a request for records, the denial must be in writing and set out the name and title of the person responsible for the denial. The District must provide suggestions for overcoming any practical basis for denying access to the records.
What must be included in a denial.
A District must produce the salaries of all employees.
What salary information must a District produce?
The consequences for a person who discloses confidential information acquired in a closed session to a person outside of that session.
What are: (1) Injunctive relief to prevent disclosure of confidential information; (2) Disciplinary action for an employee; or (3) Referral to a grand jury.