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Got a question? Try Ask the MMA Can a city or town board conduct meetings outside of the community?
Q: Can a city or town board conduct meetings outside of the community?
A: According to municipal attorneys and others who specialize in municipal law, there is nothing in state law that prohibits governmental bodies such as boards of selectmen and planning boards from meeting outside their community’s boundaries. However, holding meetings outside of the city or town without a compelling reason for doing so could be seen as circumventing the intent of the state’s Open Meeting Law.
State law (M.G.L. Ch. 39, Sec. 9) states that annual town meetings “shall be held within the geographic limits of the town unless a special law, charter or by-law provides otherwise.” The fact that lawmakers did not include a similar provision regarding other governmental bodies suggests tacit recognition that it may be necessary or desirable in some cases for local boards to meet outside of the community, according to Jim Lampke, Hull’s town counsel and the secretary/treasurer of the City Solicitors and Town Counsel Association. Examples cited by Lampke and others where it may be appropriate for a board to meet outside of the city or town include: meetings involving a board of selectmen and state officials in Boston; a planning board that meets with its counterpart in an adjoining town concerning a proposed development of concern to both municipalities; or a meeting in New York City between selectmen and representatives of a bond-issuing firm. Lampke also suggested that it may be legitimate for a governing body of an island community to hold meetings on the mainland for the convenience of state officials or others who have been asked to attend.
The Open Meeting Law (M.G.L. Ch. 39, Sec. 23) does not explicitly address where local boards should hold their meetings, but it does, of course, prohibit boards in most circumstances from making decisions in private. Meetings held in locations inconvenient for residents could be seen as violating “what we know to be the basic purpose of the law – to do the people’s business in public,” says Barnstable Town Attorney Bob Smith.
Got a question? Try Ask the MMA Can a city or town board conduct meetings outside of the community?
Can a city or town board conduct meetings outside of the community?
Q: Can a city or town board conduct meetings outside of the community?
A: According to municipal attorneys and others who specialize in municipal law, there is nothing in state law that prohibits governmental bodies such as boards of selectmen and planning boards from meeting outside their community’s boundaries. However, holding meetings outside of the city or town without a compelling reason for doing so could be seen as circumventing the intent of the state’s Open Meeting Law.
State law (M.G.L. Ch. 39, Sec. 9) states that annual town meetings “shall be held within the geographic limits of the town unless a special law, charter or by-law provides otherwise.” The fact that lawmakers did not include a similar provision regarding other governmental bodies suggests tacit recognition that it may be necessary or desirable in some cases for local boards to meet outside of the community, according to Jim Lampke, Hull’s town counsel and the secretary/treasurer of the City Solicitors and Town Counsel Association. Examples cited by Lampke and others where it may be appropriate for a board to meet outside of the city or town include: meetings involving a board of selectmen and state officials in Boston; a planning board that meets with its counterpart in an adjoining town concerning a proposed development of concern to both municipalities; or a meeting in New York City between selectmen and representatives of a bond-issuing firm. Lampke also suggested that it may be legitimate for a governing body of an island community to hold meetings on the mainland for the convenience of state officials or others who have been asked to attend.
The Open Meeting Law (M.G.L. Ch. 39, Sec. 23) does not explicitly address where local boards should hold their meetings, but it does, of course, prohibit boards in most circumstances from making decisions in private. Meetings held in locations inconvenient for residents could be seen as violating “what we know to be the basic purpose of the law – to do the people’s business in public,” says Barnstable Town Attorney Bob Smith.
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