HB170 Hearing January 11 at 10:00

January 10, 2017

House Bill 170 on publishing notices and minutes on the web has been introduced in the N.H. House and assigned to the House Judiciary Committee. This bill is sponsored by Rep. Ed Comeau (R). RTKNH supports this bill.

HB170 is scheduled for a hearing by the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, January 11, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. in room 208 of the Legislative Office Building in Concord, N.H.  The public is encouraged to attend and testify in favor of this bill.

This bill adds 1 sentence to RSA 91-A:2, II and changes 1 word in another sentence of that section. The first sentence requires minutes to be published on the web if a public body has a website:

Once they become available, the minutes shall also be posted on the public body’s Internet website, if one exists.

The second sentence on posting notices changes the word “may” to “shall” concerning posting notices on the web:

Except in an emergency or when there is a meeting of a legislative committee, a notice of the time and place of each such meeting, including a nonpublic session, shall be posted in 2 appropriate places one of which [may] shall be the public body’s Internet website, if such exists, or shall be printed in a newspaper of general circulation in the city or town at least 24 hours, excluding Sundays and legal holidays, prior to such meetings.

The full text of the bill is available here.

Written by dktaylornh Posted in Bills