AGO 85-10.

• Case Date: June 24, 1985
• Court: Colorado

Colorado Attorney General Opinions 1985. AGO 85-10. June 24, 1985Department of Law Attorney General Opinion FORMAL OPINION of DUANE WOODARD Attorney General Opinion No. 85-10 AG Alpha No. RL LO FBERE (RL LO AGAOK) EDITED Alan Charnes Director Department of Revenue 1375 Sherman Street Denver, CO 80203 RE: Quorums at Lottery Commission meetings conducted by means of telephone conference callsDear Mr. Charnes: I write in response to your request for my opinion about Lottery Commission quorums constituted by means of telephone conference calls. QUESTION PRESENTED AND CONCLUSION Is it lawful to use telephone conference calls as a means to constitute a quorum at a Lottery Commission meeting when an emergency situation exists? Yes. Because of the Lottery Commission's unique enabling legislation exempting it from compliance with the Open Meetings Act in emergency situations, telephone conference calls may be used to obtain the attendance of commissioners in such situations. ANALYSIS The Lottery Commission is required to hold at least one meeting each month. Section 24-35-207(7), C.R.S. (1982). In accordance with this requirement, the regularly scheduled meeting for March 1985 was to be held on the 13th of the month. A few days prior to March 13th, the meeting was cancelled because a quorum of the commissioners was unavailable. The meeting was reset for March 27th, the first date on which a quorum was available for the meeting. Shortly after March 13th, lottery staff discovered a sentence in game rule 13 which was unclear and could mislead some of the players. Because game 13 was scheduled to start on or about April 1, 1985, an emergency rule was necessary. On or about March 25, 1985, one of the commissioners determined that he would be unable to attend the meeting. His absence meant that the lottery would not have a quorum to vote on the emergency amendment. On or about March 27, 1985, the commission secretary contacted counsel for the lottery to determine whether a telephone conference call could be used to obtain the attendance of the commissioners. Lottery counsel stated that a telephone conference call could be used under the circumstances to obtain the attendance of a quorum of the commissioners. At the March 27 meeting, two commissioners were physically present, and they conducted all business that could be conducted...