GUIDELINES TO PREVENT SERIAL MEETINGS

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I IDA 1W BEST BEST & KRIEGER �4 ATTORNEYS AT LAW OLD SCHOOL PROBLEMS A. Contacts with staff The goal of the Brown Act is to have local government bodies deliberate and make decisions in an open and public meeting. If a staff member met individually with each Brown Act body member and served as an intermediary to forge consensus among the members, what is sometimes termed a "wheel meeting" because the staff member serves as the hub communicating with individual members, the spokes, the public would be deprived of the opportunity to observe and participate in the decision making process. On the flip side, if Brown Act body members showed up to conduct business without the benefit of a staff report or an opportunity to have new concepts or history explained, the meeting may become inefficient and the members would be unprepared to conduct the People's business. Neither of these two scenarios serves the public well. The Brown Act recognizes the value of staff briefings, but imposes limits to protect its goals. (Gov. Code § 54952.2(b)(2).) It allows staff members to answer questions and provide information to Brown Act body members, but prohibits staff from communicating the positions of the Brown Act body members to other members of that same body: [The Brown Act provides that the prohibition on serial meetings] shall not be construed as preventing an employee or official of a local agency, from engaging in separate conversations or communications outside of a meeting authorized by this chapter with members of a legislative body in order to answer questions or provide information regarding a matter that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the local agency, if that person does not 93939.0020E\3 t 180968.1 -3- This product provided under the Public Policy & Ethics Group Program