State lawmakers hope to close a loophole in one of Pennsylvania’s government transparency laws with a bill headed to the House for consideration.
The state Supreme Court in November clarified a 2021 amendment to the state Sunshine Act that created four exceptions to the law’s public notice requirement. One, the court said, allows public agencies to circumvent the notice requirement entirely.
In a 4-3 decision, the majority held that school boards and other public agencies can take official action on items not included in an agenda before a public meeting, if a majority of members vote to do so.
The decision alarmed transparency watchdogs who argued it weakens the Sunshine Act’s requirement that government business be conducted publicly. Sen. Jarrett Coleman (R-Lehigh), whose challenge of a vote by the Parkland School District led to the ruling, said the court majority had “opened Pandora’s Box.
The Local Government Committee on Tuesday approved House Bill 2146, amending the Sunshine Act to limit the types of matters an agency could consider without notice.
Under the legislation, public officials could avoid the notice requirement only for matters concerning a real or potential danger to life or property; or trivial items not involving expenditures or contracts brought to the agency’s attention less than 24 hours before a meeting or by a resident or taxpayer during the meeting.
An agency can add such matters to a meeting agenda by announcing the reason for changing the agenda and voting by majority to add them.
“This amendment does rightfully, I believe, take the wide open gap that we have before us with the Supreme Court decision and narrows it down to legitimate areas of expediency that need to be acted upon,” Rep. Brett Miller (R-Lancaster), the committee’s ranking Republican, said during the meeting.
Miller co-sponsored the legislation with Local Government Committee Chairman Robert Freeman (D-Northampton). Freeman said the language was drafted in consultation with the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors. That organization declared the decision a victory for local government efficiency.
Freeman offered an amendment that would create another category of exception to the notice requirement for minor administrative matters inadvertently omitted from an agenda, allowing an agency to vote on personnel actions or time sensitive litigation after a closed-door meeting.
It would allow purchases in an auction under $13,200 – the current threshold for telephonic bids – to repair or prevent damage to public property or bids under an auction deadline. The agency could also complete paperwork for borrowing or tax anticipation notes if the borrowing is already approved at a public meeting, grant applications and minor permit approvals.
A public agency’s solicitor would be responsible to determine whether the exceptions apply in a given case. Both Freeman’s amendment and the bill passed the committee with unanimous votes and head to the full House for consideration.
Rep. Abigail Salisbury (D-Allegheny) said the Sunshine Act is often misunderstood by members of the public and elected officials.
“This is not authorizing taking actions on any of these items outside of a meeting, in between meetings, absent a meeting, behind closed doors, via email, via phone, any of these other types of things,” Salisbury, who is a Swissvale borough council member, said. “Sometimes people try to take informal paths, but we want to make sure that there’s full transparency for the public.”
