Highland Park council reviews changes to rules of order, debates executive-session notice, attendance, and social-media records

The Highland Park Borough Council met in a special session to review proposed changes to its rules of order, discussing executive-session notice requirements, attendance and vacancy language, public-participation timing and limits, and how social-media and phone use can create Open Public Records Act (OPRA) obligations.

Council members and borough officials said the changes are intended to align meeting procedures with the Open Public Meetings Act and other state requirements and to clarify ambiguous language that could be misread by residents or result in unintended administrative consequences. Borough Attorney Terry explained the legal baseline for executive sessions, and several council members pressed for clearer wording on attendance and on what counts as a public-record when members use personal devices or social media for borough business.

Most of the discussion centered on several recurring items. On executive sessions, Terry said, "you need to have the executive session published before," noting that the council must publish notice consistent with the Open Public Meetings Act before holding the session. Council members asked whether disclosure rules that could jeopardize federal or state funding were treated the same; the attorney said the packet language reflected typical OPMA provisions but that she would confirm and return with a statutory citation.

Attendance and vacancy language drew sustained debate. The draft reads that "every…