HB 677 Summary

• Allows boards to conduct remote public meetings using interactive conference technology, with at least one physical location open for in-person attendance and public testimony.

• Requires remote meetings to include video and audio streaming with instructions for public remote participation, and boards must record meetings when practicable and post recordings until official minutes are published.

• Permits boards to require contact information from in-person attendees for contact tracing purposes when a state of emergency for contagious illness has been declared.

• Maintains existing authority for boards to hold in-person meetings at multiple sites connected by interactive conference technology, with automatic recesses up to one hour if communication is lost.

• Effective July 1, 2021; amendments to Chapter 92 (Sunshine Law) establish three meeting format options: traditional single-site in-person, multi-site in-person with technology connection, or remote meetings with a public in-person location.