The Brown Act

(The Brown Act, first enacted in 1953, is the law that governs the open meeting process for governmental bodies in California.)

I am sure that every state now has laws governing open meeting laws for governmental agencies. I know that in Massachusetts we did and various City Councils and Town Selectmen were always in the news for violating its purpose.

When I was appointed to the post of Trustee of the Palm Springs Public Library, I too was given a copy of the law, along with information about revealing ethical and financial disclosures. However as a service to the many different individuals who serve on these boards, mostly for free, the Riverside County District Attorney's Office conducted a training on The Brown Act and the Political Reform Act at the Palm Desert City Council chambers.

So there I was with about 100 others who serve on various boards, committees, along with elected officials to hear about the pitfalls and legalities of these acts. Most of what we heard seemed fairly self-explanatory, but it also made me a bit cautious in discussing too much with my fellow trustees as it might be construed as a "serial meeting" that would not meet the test of the public's "right to know."

A few things were surprising and made me rethink a few things about our Trustee Meetings. Among them:

• Individuals are NOT required to register or state their name during public comment.
• All documents given to those on a Board have to be made available to the public.
• Reimbursements for travel or business need to come from the authorizing entity.
• Some things may actually be legal, but still appear unethical.

I found it interesting and helpful as I begin this process of being in the public eye.