How to access public meetings of local government boards in Essex County and New Jersey

The New Jersey Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA) was signed into law in 1975 to give the public the right to join, watch, and take part in official meetings of public bodies like town councils, boards of education, and zoning or planning boards.

Also known as New Jersey’s “Sunshine Law,” OPMA requires public bodies to tell the public about meetings ahead of time, share what they’ll be talking about with agendas, and report what happened at previous meetings with minutes. 

OPMA applies to state, county, and municipal public bodies and agencies.

In Essex County, at least 100 public bodies are required to follow the OPMA and ensure the public’s right to participate in their meetings. 

The Jersey Bee produced this explainer about accessing public meetings to help residents understand their rights to attend open public meetings and the responsibilities of boards and agencies to ensure those rights.

What public bodies are covered by the Open Public Meetings Act?

New Jersey state law defines public bodies as a group of two or more people organized under a commission, authority, board, council, or committee that votes on government functions or is authorized to spend public funds.

Public bodies covered by OPMA include:

• Municipal town councils.
• Municipal boards and commissions like:
  • Planning boards.
  • Zoning boards.
  • Boards of health.
  • Library boards.
• Public school boards.
• County boards of commissioners.
• County boards and commissions like:
  • Essex County Youth Services Commission
  • Essex County Environmental Commission
  • Essex County Recreation and Open Space Trust Fund Advisory Board

Groups exempt from OPMA include:

• Executive or legislative advisory boards or commissions.
• Judiciary committees.
• Grand and petit juries.
• Parole boards.
• New Jersey Commission of Investigation.
• New Jersey Apportionment Commission.
• Political party committees.

What are open public meetings?

An open public meeting is one where most members are present and plan to talk about public business.

Public business includes anything related to the body’s function or things it’s currently reviewing.

Local council or school board meetings may be separated into conference, regular, and executive sessions.

Conference and regular sessions are open to the public. 

Conference sessions may include discussion of board business and passage of non-binding resolutions. In town councils, this may include things like:

• Commemorative resolutions to honor local people, organizations, or events.

• Resolutions to express opinions on state or national topics.
• Resolutions to symbolically support community events or initiatives.
• Policy intent resolutions to indicate legislative intentions.
• Advocacy resolutions to urge other public bodies or agencies to take specific actions.
• Public awareness resolutions to designate days, weeks, or months to raise awareness for particular issues.
• Internal request resolutions to set new departmental guidelines or request the study of an issue and report back.

Regular sessions are where public bodies take formal action to pass laws or adopt policy. They may also be called working or voting meetings. Agenda items may include:

• Establishing or updating ordinances (laws)
• Approving budgets
• Granting licenses and permits
• Approving contracts

Executive sessions are private meetings of the body where sensitive topics are discussed and may occur during a public meeting by asking the public to temporarily leave the room.

Read more about executive sessions below “When can a public body exclude the public from its meeting?”

Specific boards and commissions may also go into executive sessions and typically only hold regular meetings to deliberate and make decisions about relevant issues.

What are the public’s rights under New Jersey’s Open Public Meetings Act?

Under OPMA, the public has the right to:

• Get notice of upcoming meetings.
• Attend meetings.
• Receive comprehensive minutes of the meetings. 

Any member of the public can attend an open public meeting, regardless of occupation, including journalists.

Public bodies must publish their meeting schedule annually or 48 hours prior to the meeting. Notices must include the time, date, and location of each meeting.

Annual schedules must be released within seven days of a public body’s first meeting of the year, known as an organization meeting. If there is no organization or reorganization meeting, notices must be issued by Jan. 10, according to OPMA.

Meeting notices must be published in at least two physical newspapers and posted in a public place like a municipal website. People can also request a notice by mail.

If a meeting agenda is available when notice is given, it must also be included, according to OPMA.

What are open public meeting minutes and what do they record?

The OPMA requires that “reasonably comprehensible” minutes of each meeting be recorded. They must include:

• Meeting time and place
• Members present
• Subjects discussed
• Actions taken
• Other information that may be required by law. 

Public meeting minutes must be released “promptly,” according to OPMA, but it does not offer specific timelines. The New Jersey Supreme Court has previously ruled that minutes should be released no later than the body’s next scheduled meeting.

Introduced and passed ordinances and resolutions are also supposed to be uploaded to the municipality’s website, under the law.

Can public meetings be recorded?

A 2007 New Jersey Supreme Court called Tarus v. Borough of Pine Hill guaranteed the right for people to record public meetings.

This right is subject to “reasonable restrictions,” according to the American Civil Liberties of New Jersey (ACLU-NJ). 

The reasonable restrictions include:

• Camera types and amounts.
• Placement of cameras.
• Location of camera operators.
• Lighting placement.
• Noise level of camera operator.

“Generally, a person who uses a compact, quiet, and unobtrusive camera and who does not, through videotaping, physically interfere with a meeting or other individuals’ access to it, will be free to record,” ACLU-NJ staff attorney Liza Weisberg said.

People with large cameras or additional equipment may have to notify the body in advance to manage capacity in the room in which they’re meeting.

What are public comment rules at meetings of local government boards and public agencies? 

Municipal governing boards and boards of education are required to set aside a portion of their meetings for public comment. The length of public comment periods is decided by the board.

Other public bodies independently determine whether or not members of the public can participate or comment during meetings.

Members of the public making comments may be required to follow time limits but are not restricted in what they can say as long as it relates to governmental issues.

Bodies may require people to sign up to speak during public comments. Sign-up may be electronic or hand-written with forms posted in or near the meeting location.

Public bodies are not required to respond to public comments or questions directed towards them, even if they have dedicated comment periods. 

When can a public body exclude the public from its meeting?

Executive sessions are meetings of public bodies that are closed to the public. But OPMA requires the body to pass a resolution stating the nature of the upcoming discussion and the timeframe for its disclosure before going into executive session.

Here are the only nine things a public body can discuss in an executive session:

• Topics that are required to be discussed privately by state or federal law.
• Topics that reduce its chance of receiving federal funds if discussed publicly. 
• Topics that would violate an individual’s privacy.
• Collective bargaining agreements and proposed union negotiations.
• Topics relating to investments or real estate transactions involving public funds where public interest could be adversely affected if disclosed.
• Police matters related to public safety or investigations of possible violations of the law.
• Topics covered by attorney-client privilege like pending or anticipated litigation or contract negotiations involving the public body.
• Personnel matters like employment, termination, or evaluation of current or prospective employees. (Current employees may request public discussion about their employment.) 
• Public hearing deliberations that may result in the suspension or loss of a license or permit.

Executive meeting minutes must be requested under New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act and may be redacted. A specific basis for each redaction is required, according to Griffin. But those redactions may not be permanent as litigation or contract negotiations end.

What happens if a public body violates OPMA?

Common OPMA violations include failure to make meeting minutes available to the public, discussing public business during executive sessions, and failure to disclose executive session decisions, according to CJ Griffin, a New Jersey lawyer specializing in press freedom and government transparency.

If a public body doesn’t follow OPMA rules, residents can file a lawsuit in New Jersey Superior Court. The court can undo decisions made during the meeting, order the individuals to follow the rules, or make them pay a fine. Lawsuits must be filed within 45 calendar days of the body’s actions being made public.

“Most people do not have thousands of dollars to file a lawsuit, so most violations go unchallenged,” said Griffin. 

If found guilty, each OPMA violator can be fined $100 for their first violation, and $100 to $500 for each subsequent violation. But this penalty must be pursued by the state attorney general or a county prosecutor.

How can Essex County residents access open public meetings of local governments and agencies?

Public meetings are held in hybrid, online, or in-person formats. Meeting notices should include the date, time, location, and ways to access the meeting.

Find local public meeting information on municipal, school, and county websites.

How can people prepare to attend a public meeting?

Members of the public can refer to meeting agendas provided by public bodies to identify what will be discussed.

Other ways to prepare include:

• Reviewing previous meeting minutes.
• Watching previous meetings, if available.
• Researching more about the body meeting.
• Researching more about the topics that will be discussed.

Look for this information online, on the public body’s website, or contact your local municipal clerk.