STATE OF MICHIGAN

FRANK J. KELLEY, ATTORNEY GENERAL

Opinion No. 6636

October 23, 1989

COUNTY CLERK:

Duty to record minutes of joint meeting of committees of county board of commissioners where a quorum of board is present

OPEN MEETINGS ACT:

Joint meeting of committees of a county board of commissioners where a quorum of the board is present

Meeting of county planning commission upon which some county commissioners serve and other county commissioners are present

A joint meeting of committees of a county board of commissioners in which a quorum of the board is present must be treated as a meeting to be noticed and open to the public as provided in the Open Meetings Act.

A meeting of a county planning commission committee, upon which two members of the county board of commissioners serve, need not be noticed and open to the public as required by the Open Meetings Act if other members of the board also attend that meeting as observers.

The county clerk or deputy county clerk must be present and record the minutes of a joint meeting of committees of a county board of commissioners at which a quorum of the board is present.

Honorable Dave Camp

State Representative

The Capitol

Lansing, MI 48909

You have requested my opinion on two questions, both of which involve the Open Meetings Act, MCL 15.261 et seq; MSA 4.1800(11) et seq. You have described two situations in which a quorum of a county board of commissioners is convened, and you inquire whether the Open Meetings Act requires that these situations be treated as meetings of the board of commissioners to be noticed and open to the public.

Your first question concerns a situation in which two standing committees of the board, each composed of less than a quorum of the full board, hold a joint meeting and a quorum of the entire Board results. You ask whether such a joint meeting should be posted not only as a joint committee meeting but also as a meeting of the board, and whether, pursuant to MCL 46.4; MSA 5.324, the county clerk or deputy county clerk must record minutes of such a joint meeting.

The Open Meetings Act, Sec. 2(a), MCL 15.262(2)(a); MSA 4.1800(12)(2)(a), defines a meeting as:

Thus, when a quorum of the members of a public body meet to consider and discuss public business it is a "meeting" under the above definition. OAG, 1977-78, No 5183, p 21, 25 (March 8, 1977), states:

See also, OAG, 1979-1980, No 5788, p 1015 (September 23, 1980); OAG, 1981-1982, No 6057, p 622 (April 20, 1982).

Therefore, if a joint meeting of two committees of the board results in the presence of a quorum of the board of commissioners, it must comply in all respects with the Open Meetings Act, and notice of the joint meeting must include the fact that a quorum of the board of commissioners will be present.

OAG, 1985-86, No 6343, p 228 (February 14, 1986), concluded that it is the duty of the county clerk or deputy clerk to record the proceedings of the county board of commissioners when a majority of them are convened as a committee of the board. Therefore, the minutes of a joint committee meeting at which a quorum of the county board of commissioners is present must be recorded by the county clerk or deputy clerk.

It is my opinion, in answer to your first question, that a joint meeting of committees of a county board of commissioners in which a quorum of the board is present must be treated as a meeting to be noticed and open to the public as provided in the Open Meetings Act. It is my further opinion that the county clerk or deputy county clerk must be present at such joint committee meeting to record the minutes of the meeting.

Your second question concerns a meeting of a county planning commission committee which consists of more than 50 members, two of whom are members of the county board of commissioners. You ask whether, if additional members of the board attend a public meeting of the planning commission committee so as to constitute a quorum of the Board, the meeting must be posted as a meeting of the Board.

The Open Meetings Act, Sec. 2a, supra, defines a "meeting" as the convening of a public body "for the purpose of deliberating toward or rendering a decision on a public policy." While the commissioners who are members of the planning commission committee may discuss public issues, the non-member commissioners may attend such meetings as observers. The attendance of a quorum on this occasion would constitute a "chance gathering or conference not designed to avoid this act." Open Meetings Act, Sec. 3(10), MCL 15.263(10); MSA 4.1800(13)(10). So long as the commissioners present do not engage in deliberations or render decisions, the meeting need not be posted as a meeting of the county board of commissioners. See e.g., OAG, 1979-1980, No 5437, p 36 (February 2, 1979); OAG, 1981-1982, No 6074, p 662 (June 11, 1982).

It is my opinion, in answer to your second question, that a meeting of a county planning commission, upon which two members of the county board of commissioners serve, need not be noticed and open to the public as required by the Open Meetings Act if other members of the county board attend that meeting as observers.

Frank J. Kelley

Attorney General