Brookline Pushes MA To Continue To Allow Remote Meetings

BROOKLINE, MA — The state of an emergency that was put in effect March 10, 2020 officially ends Tuesday, but what does it mean for public boards and bodies —such as Brookline's Town Meeting— that have been meeting for the past year and some change remotely?

Several Town Meeting members say holding the legislative sessions online made it easier for them to participate, even as a bill is set for a vote on Beacon Hill.

"The House is poised to vote [Tuesday] on H.3872, a bill that would temporarily extend a variety of Covid era regulations including the ability for public meetings and representative town meetings to be held virtually," according to Brookline Rep. Tommy Vitolo.

Proponents note public participation increased during the pandemic, and the virtual meetings offer more equity by making it easier for people with work, transportation or childcare issues to attend. An extension of the rules past the emergency order would likely require bodies to hold hybrid meetings, where the session is held in person with the ability for people to participate remotely. There would also be exemptions for boards that don't have the technological capabilities to offer remote meetings.

The Brookline Commission for Women has been leading on this issue since last August, according to Rebecca Stone, who chairs the commission. In August, the local commission joined the Mass Commission on the Status of Women asking the legislature to make permanent the relaxation of the Open Meeting Law that permitted the option of all-remote or hybrid public meetings.

Since then, the Brookline Select Board, Advisory Committee, EDAB, and the School Committee have all supported that effort.

"Although remote access has advantages for anyone operating under temporal, physical, financial, or caregiving constraints, women are overrepresented in the community that is most typically facing those constraints to attending (and/or serving) in person at boards and commissions," said Stone, who is also a Town Meeting member from precinct 3.

She and Select Board member Raul Fernandez and Advisory Committee member Michael Sandman testified remotely in favor of two bills under consideration (S.22104/H3213) to make the option of remote meetings permanent.

"It is beyond frustrating, not to mention disruptive to local government during this not-yet-post-covid summer, that the legislature has been taking a hurry-up-and-wait approach to both that legislation and the Governor’s request to extend to September the deadline for the sunset of the provisions," she said in an email. "The legislature, of course, continues to enjoy that option for themselves until the fall."

As for what will happen, it's still unclear.

The Massachusetts Municipal Association, which advocates for local governments, says its members want the option to offer remote or hybrid meetings, but they do not want it to be a requirement.