LRBs0278/1
MES:jld:rs
2009 - 2010 LEGISLATURE
ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1,
TO 2009 ASSEMBLY BILL 546
February 10, 2010 - Offered by Representative Roys.
AB546-ASA1,1,3
1An Act to create 66.0145 of the statutes;
relating to: requiring governmental
2bodies of certain political subdivisions to post meeting notices on their Web
3sites.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
Currently, under the open meetings law, with certain exceptions, meetings of
state and local governmental bodies must be preceded by public notice, must be held
in places that are reasonably accessible to the public, and must be open to the public
at all times, although such meetings may convene in closed session for the purpose
of considering certain matters specified by law.
A public notice of a meeting of a governmental body must contain the time, date,
place, and subject matter of the meeting and must be given at least 24 hours before
the start of the meeting, although shorter notice, but never less than two hours, may
be given under limited circumstances. The notice must be given to news media that
have filed a request to receive such a notice and the notice must appear in the
governmental body's official newspaper or, if none exists, in a news medium likely
to give notice in the area.
Under this substitute amendment, a governmental body of a city, village, town,
or county (political subdivision) that has a Web site is required to post a public notice
of a meeting that is subject to the open meetings law on that political subdivision's
Web site. The substitute amendment also allows a town that could otherwise comply
with current law notice requirements by posting the notice in at least three places
to meet the requirements by posting at the town hall and one other public place if the
notice is also posted on the town's Web site. Current law defines "governmental body"
to include any agency, board, commission, committee, council, or department of a
political subdivision.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
AB546-ASA1,2,2
266.0145 Posting of public meeting notice, minutes. (1) In this section:
AB546-ASA1,2,33
(a) "Political subdivision" means a city, village, town, or county.
AB546-ASA1,2,64
(b) "Public notice" means a public notice, as that term is used in s. 19.84, that
5sets forth the time, date, place, and subject matter of a meeting of a governmental
6body of the political subdivision.
AB546-ASA1,2,9
7(2) If a political subdivision has a Web site, it shall post on its Web site the
8public notice for every meeting of a governmental body of the political subdivision,
9consistent with the notice requirements in s. 19.84 (3).
AB546-ASA1,2,13
10(3) With regard to a town, if the public notice requirements in s. 19.84 (3) may
11be met by posting the notice in at least 3 public places, the town may comply with
12such a posting requirement by posting the public notice in 2 places, one of which shall
13be the town hall, if the town also posts the public notice on its Web site.
AB546-ASA1,2,1615
(1) This act first applies to a meeting that is held on the day after the date on
16which this subsection takes effect.
