SB392 Alabama 2016 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Gerald O. Dial

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2016

Title

Open Meetings Act, excludes boards of trustees of institutions of higher education created by statute from serial meeting requirements, Sec. 36-25A-2 am'd.

Summary

SB392 would exclude statutorily created boards of trustees for higher education from the Open Meetings Act's serial meeting requirements.

What This Bill Does

The bill amends the Open Meetings Act to add statutorily created higher education boards to the list of bodies that are not subject to serial meeting rules. It adds to the existing exclusions that already cover constitutionally created higher education boards. As a result, those statutorily created boards would not have to follow the serial meeting restrictions (multiple small gatherings without public notice) that are designed to prevent bypassing open meetings rules. The rest of the Open Meetings Act would still apply to these boards where applicable.

Who It Affects

• Trustees of higher education institutions created by statute (e.g., state universities or colleges established by statute) who would be exempt from serial meeting requirements.
• The public and other government bodies that interact with these statutorily created higher-ed boards, whose serial meeting constraints would no longer apply to these boards (though other open meetings requirements still apply).

Key Provisions

• Amends Section 36-25A-2 to exclude boards of trustees of higher education institutions created by statute from the serial meeting definition.
• Adds to the existing exclusion for constitutional higher education boards, explicitly covering statutorily created boards.
• Effective immediately upon passage and the Governor's approval.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Open Meetings