[WEBINAR] Who Does What? Defining Proper Roles for Staff and Elected Officials
Effective January 1, 2025, the competitive bidding threshold for numerous Ohio public entities as set forth in Ohio Revised Code (“ORC”) Section 9.17 increased from $75,000 to $77,250 through 2025....more
After years on hold, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS”) is moving forward with a proposed rule to list monarch butterflies as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). On Dec. 12, 2024, USFWS published...more
The Build America Bureau (Bureau) of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) released on March 11, 2024, a Notice of Funding Opportunity for the new Innovative Finance and Asset Concession Grant Program (IFACGP)....more
On August 4, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) published in the Federal Register a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) on Accessibility of Web Information and Services of State and Local Government Entities. The...more
In its 2023 budget bill, H.B. 33, the Ohio Legislature modified several provisions of the Ohio Revised Code that establish dollar thresholds for when certain public authorities must competitively bid for certain goods and...more
The Open Meetings Act (“OMA”) requires Ohio’s public entities to conduct all deliberations and make all decisions in meetings that are open to the public. However, a public body can meet in executive session to discuss...more
Organizations attacked with ransomware have a bevy of decisions to make, very quickly! One of those decisions is whether to pay the ransom. Earlier this year, I had the honor of contributing to a two-part series, entitled...more
On September 2, 2021, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation (S.50001/A.40001), which includes a number of statutory protections and other emergency public health measures adopted in response to the recent increase in the...more
At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 16, 2020, at the Attorney General’s request, Governor Greg Abbott utilized Section 418.016 of the Government Code to suspend certain requirements of the Texas Open Meetings Act...more
For some time now, improving broadband internet access has been a priority for school districts and other political subdivisions across Ohio. Moreover, one of the main challenges faced by school districts in their efforts to...more
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the work of public entities had to continue. Amended Substitute House Bill 197 made that possible, by modifying the requirements of R.C. 121.22 to permit public bodies to meet by...more
The concept of a virtual public meeting arose out of necessity due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Pursuant to Amended Substitute House Bill 197, Ohio’s General Assembly authorized emergency relief to the Open Meetings Act...more
On Friday, June 25, 2021, Governor Pritzker extended the Disaster Declaration related to COVID-19 for another 30 days. Pursuant to the declaration, public bodies may continue to hold virtual meetings in accordance with the...more
On March 30, 2021, the authority for Michigan public bodies to hold electronic "virtual" meetings for any reason under the Michigan Open Meetings Act ("OMA") expired. Thus, starting on March 31, 2021, and continuing until...more
On Tuesday, October 13, 2020, the Michigan Legislature adopted amendments to the Open Meetings Act (the "OMA"), which would have immediate effect upon signature by Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Senate Bill 1108...more
In its fourth binding opinion of 2020, the Illinois Public Access Counselor found that a Chicago Public School’s Local School Council violated Section 2(a) of the Open Meetings Act by improperly discussing the timing and...more
On Friday, June 12, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed Public Act 101-640,?which, among other things, amends the Open Meetings Act to allow public bodies to hold virtual board meetings without the physical presence of a...more
The Economic Stabilization and Assistance to Severely Distressed Sectors of the United States Economy (Title IV of the Cares Act) provides assistance to companies, states, and municipalities that are distressed because of the...more
As with most issues relating to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), expectations regarding the holding of public meetings have been evolving rapidly over the past few days. ...more
A popular topic on this blog is standing in the context of a challenge to a municipal determination, primarily under the State Environmental Quality Review Act. A recent case issued by the Appellate Division, Second...more
On December 1, 2019, New Jersey’s Child Victim’s Act went into effect. This new law opens a two-year “revival” period for individuals to assert civil claims of child abuse and to file claims against institutions and...more
The Illinois Attorney General’s Public Access Counselor was once again busy during 2019, issuing binding decisions of interest to public entities governed by the Illinois Open Meetings Act and Freedom of Information Act....more
On November 18, 2019, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed changes to federal Medicaid rules that, if implemented, would affect billions of dollars of Medicaid payments nationwide, creating new...more
We recently reported on the California Supreme Court’s decision in Oroville which provided a relaxed standard for public agencies facing inverse condemnation claims. Since that decision, a new unpublished Court of Appeal...more