PAC Opinion Reminds Public Bodies to Approve Closed Minutes in Open Session
Jan 8, 2024
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On December 1, 2023, the Illinois Attorney General’s Public Access Counselor (PAC) issued a binding opinion finding that the Village of Skokie (the “Village”) violated Section 2(e) of the Illinois Open Meetings Act (the “OMA”) by voting to approve closed session minutes during a closed session.
Pursuant to Section 2(a) of the OMA, public bodies are required to conduct public business during a meeting open to the public, unless one of the exceptions found in Section 2(c) of the OMA applies. One such exception allows a public body to hold a closed session to discuss “minutes of meetings lawfully closed under this Act, whether for purposes of approval by the body of the minutes or semi-annual review of the minutes as mandated by Section 2.06.” However, Section 2(e) of the OMA prohibits a public body from taking final action during a closed session. In addition, Section 2(e) of the OMA also requires a public body to provide a public recital (and other information) regarding the item under consideration before any final action is taken by the public body.
In this case, the Village discussed and approved closed session minutes during a closed session. The PAC found that Section 2(c) of the OMA allowed the Village to enter a closed session to discuss whether to approve the closed session minutes, but Section 2(e) of the OMA required the Village to return to an open session to take final action on the closed session minutes. The Village was directed to take corrective action by placing the approval of the closed session minutes on the agenda for its next regular meeting and taking appropriate action in open session.
For any questions relating to compliance with the Open Meetings Act, please contact your Robbins Schwartz attorneys.
