Morgan County commissioners receive Open Meetings Act training; move to closed session on possible litigation

GARRETT SMITH, the meeting presenter, reviewed requirements of Utah's Open and Public Meetings Act and related provisions on public records and electronic communications, telling the Morgan County Commission that openness is the starting point for most deliberations.

Smith summarized key provisions, including the need for 24-hour public notice for meetings, restrictions on deliberating as a quorum outside a noticed meeting, and the narrow circumstances under which a meeting may be closed. "The bare minimum is the 24 hours notice," Smith said, explaining that the statute permits local bodies to exceed that minimum for greater transparency.

The training focused on practical guidance the commission must follow. Smith emphasized that a quorum may not act together outside a meeting "in a concerted and deliberate way to predetermine an action to be taken," and that electronic messages sent between members when the public body is not convened are allowed so long as they do not predetermine votes or otherwise…