Indiana lawmakers support allowing virtual board meetings

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Indiana legislators are supporting proposals that would permanently allow members of local government boards to participate virtually in public meetings.

Similar bills approved by the House and Senate would permit boards to adopt policies allowing members to vote virtually as long as they can be seen and heard.

State and local government boards have generally been allowed to hold all-virtual meetings since Gov. Eric Holcomb issued an exemption to the current state law requiring in-person meetings last spring as part of the COVID-19 public health measures that are ongoing.

The proposals would require at least half of the board members to attend public meetings in person and members participate virtually in no more than half of the meetings except for limited reasons such as illness or military service.

The House-passed version would require meetings with virtual participation to also allow the public to observe the meeting online starting in July, while the Senate version would delay that requirement until January 2023.