Salt Lake City School District
Board Policy     B - 2

Title:                             School Board Meetings
Index:                           B = Board Policy

It is the policy of the Salt Lake City School District Board of Education to meet regularly so that the board may discuss or act upon matters over which it has jurisdiction. All meetings of the board must be open to the public unless they are closed in the manner and for the purposes allowed under Utah law.

The purpose of this policy is to ensure compliance with all relevant sections of Utah law, including requirements of the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act, and to provide appropriate avenues for public comment on issues before the board.

Public Comment at Board Meetings and Communication with Board Members. The Salt Lake City School District Board of Education recognizes that public comments and suggestions are vital to its decision-making process. The board welcomes public participation and will normally include a public comment period on the agenda of every regularly scheduled board business meeting. Administrative procedures governing public comment at board business meetings are attached to this policy. In board study sessions, members of the public in attendance may be called upon, at the discretion of the board’s presiding officer, to contribute informally to the discussion, if time and the nature of the topic permit.

Citizens may contact members of the board to express views or urge action via e-mail, postal delivery, and telephone at the addresses and numbers on the school district website. Messages may also be sent by e-mail or letter to the office of the superintendent, where they will be copied and distributed to all board members.

Notice and Agenda Requirements. At least once each year, the board must give public notice of its annual meeting schedule, in accordance with Utah law, including the anticipated date, time, and place of each meeting. In addition, the board must give public notice of every individual meeting, at least 24 hours in advance, including the agenda, date, time, and place of the meeting.

The board directs that notice of meetings, including agendas, be posted on the Salt Lake City School District public website, sent to the office of the mayor of Salt Lake City, and posted on the Utah Public Notice website as soon as it becomes available.

Agendas must be reasonably specific in describing the topics scheduled for discussion. In general, the board will follow its posted agenda. If a topic not on the agenda arises during a public meeting, the board may, at the discretion of its presiding officer, discuss the topic but may not take any final action on it during that meeting.

Agenda Development. The board president, board vice president, and superintendent should develop board-meeting agendas collaboratively. Any board member may request that a topic be placed on an upcoming meeting agenda by contacting the board president or vice president. In general, scheduling of topics is at the discretion of board leadership, but if three or more board members join in requesting that a topic be placed on the agenda, that request will be accommodated within two meeting.

Public Hearings. A public hearing is an open meeting at which members of the public are given a reasonable opportunity to comment on the subject of the meeting. A public hearing may differ from the regular public comment period in both its expected focus and potential duration. In general, the board, through its elected leadership, may determine whether a board meeting will include a public hearing. However, the board must hold a public hearing, as required by statute, when considering any of the following: (a) whether to close a school or change school boundaries, (b) the adoption of a district budget, (c) an increase in taxation, or (d) changes to the board member compensation schedule.

Emergency Meetings. If a board meeting must be called to address an emergency or urgent public necessity, rendering impractical the 24-hour notice otherwise required, the best practical notice must be given, including time, place, and topics to be considered at the meeting. An emergency meeting may not be held unless an attempt has been made to notify all board members and the majority of members approve the meeting.

Location of Meetings. Regularly scheduled meetings must be held at the location specified in the board’s annual notice of meetings, unless a change of location has been specified in the public notice for an individual meeting.

Workshops, study sessions, and executive sessions held on the same day as a regularly scheduled open public meeting of the board must be held at the same location as that regular meeting, except as deemed necessary and permitted under Utah law.

Quorum Required for Action. A majority of the board, or four members (4/7), constitutes a quorum of the board. The presence of a quorum is required before the board may take any vote or action. A quorum is not required at informational meetings, study sessions, or executive sessions at which no action is taken. The board may not vote by secret ballot, except to elect board leadership.

Closed Meetings. The board may hold closed meetings upon a two-thirds (2/3) affirmative vote of the board members present at a meeting for which public notice was given, pursuant to Utah Code. The board may not approve any resolution, rule, regulation, contract or appointment at a closed meeting, nor may the board interview an applicant to fill a vacant position on the board.

Recording and Minutes of Open Board Meetings. Both written minutes and a recording must be kept of every open board meeting, except site visits or traveling tours where no vote or action is taken by the board. At such site meetings or traveling tours, either a recording or written minutes must be kept.

The board considers its written minutes, once they have been approved by vote of the board, to be the official record of actions taken.

The recording and minutes of an open meeting at which a vote is taken to hold a closed meeting must contain the reason or reasons for holding a closed meeting and the votes, by name, of members present, either for or against the motion to hold such a meeting. The location of the closed meeting must also be recorded.

Recording of Closed Board Meetings. A recording must be kept of all closed board meetings, except when the discussions exclusively concern an individual’s character, professional competence, physical or mental health; or the deployment of security personnel, devices, or systems.

Electronic Meetings. The board authorizes that an electronic board meeting may be held if requested by a member of the board at least three (3) days in advance, in accordance with state law, this policy, and its associated procedures.

If such a request is made, all board members must be notified 24 hours before the meeting that one or more board member(s) will participate by telephone or other telecommunications device, computer, or similar methods of remote communication. Members who participate in a board meeting through electronic means may be counted in the quorum. The primary or anchor location of the electronic meeting must be in the building where the board would normally meet if it were not holding an electronic meeting. The board must provide space and facilities at the anchor location so that interested persons and the public may attend and monitor open portions of the meeting.

All rules and regulations governing open meetings, notice, and other matters apply equally to board meetings held through electronic means.

Recording of Board Meetings by Members of the Public. Any person in attendance may record all or part of the proceedings in any open board meeting, provided such recording does not interfere with the conduct of the meeting.

Annual Training. The board president must ensure that members of the board are provided annual training on provisions of the Utah Open and Public Meetings Act and this policy.

Approval Date:  9/04/07

The Salt Lake City School District does not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, or sex in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquires regarding non-discrimination policy: Kathleen Christy, Assistant Superintendent, 440 East 100 South, Salt Lake City, Utah 84111, (801)578-8251. You may also contact the Office for Civil Rights, Denver, CO, (303)844-5695.