Assembly committee reviews ordinance to expand teleconference eligibility for members

Assemblymember O'Neil presented Ordinance 2025‑4 on April 3, proposing amendments to Fairbanks North Star Borough Code (FNSBC) 3.16.060 to expand when assembly members may participate in meetings by teleconference.

“This is a simple ordinance that changes, the restrictions for meeting telephonically,” Assemblymember O'Neil said, and described the key change as adding a provision that allows a member to participate online because of an illness or injury to the member or an immediate family member.

The ordinance as drafted preserves a separate attendance limit that an assembly member may not miss 18 regular meetings in a 12‑month period, and it continues to require a physically present quorum for meetings that use teleconferencing. Several members raised questions about language consistency between sections that refer to “meetings” and other lines that explicitly say “regular meetings.”

Assemblymember Wilson asked whether the text on lines 36–39 would count special meetings, work sessions or finance committee meetings toward the three‑consecutive‑meeting limit; she also queried what would happen if four members participated remotely while only four were physically present. O'Neil and clerks said the ordinance requires a physical quorum to be present and that staff would need to resolve specific drafting questions.

Doctor Haney described real‑world travel and road‑blockage scenarios to illustrate reasons members might need to participate remotely, and asked whether the ordinance should require a local, state or federal disaster declaration to permit remote participation in those cases. O'Neil replied that disaster declarations are already covered elsewhere in the borough code and that adding a different rule would require a separate amendment process.

Clerks and staff present advised that if the Assembly intended to limit absence counts to regular meetings only, the ordinance language could be amended for consistency. One staff member said they would draft language or an amendment before the next meeting to address the discrepancy and consider an exception tied to specific agenda items or quasi‑judicial proceedings.

No formal motion or vote on Ordinance 2025‑4 occurred during the Committee of the Whole discussion; the item was presented, discussed and referred for further drafting and clarification with staff and the borough attorney.

The ordinance is sponsored by Assemblymember O'Neil and amends FNSBC 3.16.060 regarding teleconference participation. The Assembly moved on to other agenda items after the discussion.