Open government awareness during coronavirus emergency

Sunshine Week, the annual celebration of open records and open government, came at a time when local agencies are adapting their public meetings under COVID-19 pandemic restrictions on gatherings of ten or more people.
The following article from the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas outlines the provisions of Gov. Greg Abbott’s order temporarily suspending certain provisions of the Texas Open Meetings Act.

By Kelley Shannon, Executive Director, FOIFT

The coronavirus emergency is creating trying times for public officials and citizens when it come to open government. The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas offers these reminders and resources for complying with Texas transparency laws during the COVID-19 outbreak. Gov. Greg Abbott has suspended one portion of the Texas Open Meetings Act dealing with public gatherings during a video conference or telephone meeting of a public body, but all other aspects of the law remain in force. The public still must have sufficient notice of and access to a governmental body’s public meeting, even if it’s a virtual meeting.
The governor’s waiver issued March 16, effective only for a 30-day emergency period, removes the requirement to provide a physical gathering space for the public to watch or listen to the meeting; however, the public must be given the ability to watch or listen to the meeting and interact during public comment periods. The waiver also means a quorum of the governing body doesn’t have to be physically present in one place.
We at the FOI Foundation are noticing some confusion among public officials about how to comply with the Open Meetings Act during a virtual meeting. To answer questions, the Texas Attorney General’s Office has established an open meetings hotline at 1-888-672-6787 and an email for questions: toma@oag.texas.gov. We encourage public officials to make use of these resources.
Meanwhile, the Texas Department of Information Resources has issued this guide to help governments with technology issues as they comply with the Open Meetings Act. The public should also be aware that many governmental bodies, as allowed under newly established law, are sending “catastrophe notices” to the Texas Attorney General’s Office to suspend requirements of the Texas Public Information Act for a seven-day period if they are affected by a catastrophe. Texas governments of all sizes are currently sending notices, which must be published on the attorney general’s website. A government can also file an extension notice for another seven-day period.  
Here’s the link where you can see the notices: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/open-government/governmental-bodie…
The Attorney General’s Office also has issued a reminder about how to calculate business days when responding to a Texas Public Information Act request. It should be noted that these business day calculation rules were in place before the COVID-19 emergency.