Jim Henderson, Executive Director
AGO OAG 20-05
No. OAG 20-05
Kentucky Attorney General Opinion
Commonwealth of Kentucky Office of the Attorney General
March 18, 2020
Daniel
Cameron Attorney General.
Subject:
Whether, under the current state of emergency declared by the
President of the United States and the Governor of Kentucky,
caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic, a public agency must
identify a primary physical location for a video
teleconference at which the public may attend and view a
public meeting conducted through video teleconference under
the Open Meetings Act.
Requested
by: Jim Henderson, Executive Director Kentucky Association of
Counties
and
J.D.
Chaney, Executive Director Kentucky League of Cities
Written
by: Carmine G. Iaccarino, Executive Director, Brett R.
Nolan, Special Litigation Counsel
Syllabus:
At this time and given the extraordinary circumstances public
agencies are confronting, it is not “feasible”
under KRS 61.840 to precisely identify a primary physical
location for a video teleconference at which the public may
attend and view a public meeting conducted through video
teleconference under the Open Meetings Act. Instead, because
of the public health necessity of imposing social distancing
to help stop the spread of COVID-19, a public agency should
precisely identify a website, television station, or other
technological means by which the public may view a meeting
conducted under the Act until the conclusion of the state of
emergency.
OPINION
OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
In
December 2019, the Hubei Province of the People’s
Republic of China began experiencing an outbreak of a
never-before-seen disease, COVID-19, caused by a novel
coronavirus known as SARS-CoV-2. According to the Center for
Disease Control and Prevention, the novel coronavirus appears
to be a highly contagious virus that spreads “[b]etween
people who are in close contact with one another (within
about 6 feet).”1 Since December, COVID-19 has spread at an
exponential rate throughout the world, crippling the
healthcare systems and economies of multiple
nations.2 The United States reported its first
infection in mid-January 2020, and has now seen more than
4,000 cases. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization
announced that the COVID-19 outbreak has reached pandemic
status.3
In
response to this novel coronavirus, the Governor of Kentucky
issued Executive Order 2020-215, declaring a State of
Emergency under KRS Chapter 39A and activating the Kentucky
Emergency Operations Plan. Similarly, the President of the
United States issued a Proclamation Declaring a National
Emergency on March 13, 2020. Both the Governor and the
President have activated their emergency authority to respond
to this public health crisis. In Kentucky and many other
states, governors have issued executive orders that mandate
the closure of many privately owned businesses to the public.
Similarly, schools and churches have closed.[4] As of March 17,
2020, the Kentucky Capitol and many state agencies have also
been closed to the public.
The
potential crisis facing the Commonwealth is of unparalleled
magnitude. Yet, public agencies must continue providing
critical public services. And in doing so, agencies subject
to the Open Meetings Act (the “Act”) must conduct...
