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Chapter 0062 - 572R - H Ver of HB2876
House Engrossed
public bodies;
executive sessions; agenda
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
CHAPTER 62
HOUSE BILL 2876
AN
ACT
Amending sections 38-431.01 and 38-431.03,
Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to public meetings and proceedings.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 38-431.01, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
38-431.01.
Public bodies; open meetings required; seating; minutes; posting;
recordings; open calls
A. All meetings of any public body shall be public
meetings and all persons so desiring shall be allowed to attend and listen to
the deliberations and proceedings. All legal action of public bodies
shall occur during a public meeting.
B. Schools, school boards, executive boards and
municipalities shall provide for an amount of seating sufficient to accommodate
the reasonably anticipated attendance of all persons desiring to attend the
deliberations and proceedings, when feasible. This section does not require a
public body to relocate a meeting outside of the largest regular meeting
room.
C. All public bodies shall provide for the taking of
written minutes or a recording of all their meetings, including executive
sessions. For meetings other than executive sessions, the minutes or
recording shall include:
1. The date, time and place of the meeting.
2. The members of the public body recorded as either
present or absent.
3. A general description of the matters considered.
4. An accurate description of all legal actions
proposed, discussed or taken, including a record of how each member
voted. The minutes shall also include the names of the members who
propose each motion and the names of the persons, as given, who make statements
or present material to the public body and a reference to the legal action
about which they made statements or presented material.
D. Minutes of executive sessions shall include items
set forth in subsection C, paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this section, an accurate
description of all instructions given pursuant to section 38-431.03,
subsection A, paragraphs 4, 5 and 7 and other matters as may be deemed
appropriate by the public body.
E. The minutes or a recording of a meeting shall be
available for public inspection three working days after the meeting except as
otherwise specifically provided by this article.
F. A public body of a city or town with a population
of more than two thousand five hundred persons shall:
1. Within three working days after a meeting, except
for subcommittees and advisory committees, post on its website, if applicable,
either:
(a) A statement describing the legal actions taken
by the public body of the city or town during the meeting.
(b) Any recording of the meeting.
2. Within two working days following approval of the
minutes, post approved minutes of city or town council meetings on its website,
if applicable, except as otherwise specifically provided by this article.
3. Within ten working days after a subcommittee
or advisory committee meeting, post on its
website, if applicable, either:
(a) A statement describing legal action, if any.
(b) A recording of the meeting.
G. All or any part of a public meeting of a public
body may be recorded by any person in attendance by means of a tape recorder or
camera or any other means of sonic reproduction, provided that there is no
active interference with the conduct of the meeting.
H. The secretary of state for state public bodies,
the city or town clerk for municipal public bodies and the county clerk for all
other local public bodies shall conspicuously post open meeting law materials
prepared and approved by the attorney general on their website. A
person elected or appointed to a public body shall review the open meeting law
materials at least one day before the day that person takes office.
I. A public body may make an open call to the public
during a public meeting, subject to reasonable time, place and manner
restrictions, to allow individuals to address the public body on any issue
within the jurisdiction of the public body. At the conclusion of an
open call to the public, individual members of the public body may respond to
criticism made by those who have addressed the public body, may ask staff to
review a matter or may ask that a matter be put on a future agenda. However,
members of the public body shall not discuss or take legal action on matters
raised during an open call to the public unless the matters are properly
noticed for discussion and legal action.
J. A member of a public body shall not knowingly
direct any staff member to communicate in violation of this article.
K. Any posting required by subsection F of this
section must remain on the applicable website for at least one year after the
date of the posting.
L. a public body
may not place any proposal to impose or increase a tax rate,
assessment or fee in this state
on the consent agenda for
a meeting of the public body.
END_STATUTE
Sec. 2. Section 38-431.03, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
38-431.03.
Executive sessions; definitions
A. On a public majority vote of the members
constituting a quorum, a public body may hold an executive session but only for
the following purposes:
1. Discussion or consideration of employment,
assignment, appointment, promotion, demotion, dismissal, salaries, disciplining
or resignation of a public officer, appointee or employee of any public body,
except that, with the exception of salary discussions, an officer, appointee or
employee may demand that the discussion or consideration occur at a public
meeting. The public body shall provide the officer, appointee or
employee with written notice of the executive session as is appropriate but not
less than twenty-four hours for the officer, appointee or employee to
determine whether the discussion or consideration should occur at a public
meeting.
2. Discussion or consideration of records exempt by
law from public inspection, including the receipt and discussion of information
or testimony that is specifically required to be maintained as confidential by
state or federal law.
3. Discussion or consultation for legal advice with
the attorney or attorneys of the public body.
4. Discussion or consultation with the attorneys of
the public body in order to consider its position and instruct its attorneys
regarding the public body's position regarding contracts that are the subject
of negotiations, in pending or contemplated litigation or in settlement
discussions conducted in order to avoid or resolve litigation.
5. Discussions or consultations with designated
representatives of the public body in order to consider its position and
instruct its representatives regarding negotiations with employee organizations
regarding the salaries, salary schedules or compensation paid in the form of
fringe benefits of employees of the public body.
6. Discussion, consultation or consideration for international
and interstate negotiations or for negotiations by a city or town, or its
designated representatives, with members of a tribal council, or its designated
representatives, of an Indian reservation located within or adjacent to the
city or town.
7. Discussions or consultations with designated
representatives of the public body in order to consider its position and
instruct its representatives regarding negotiations for the purchase, sale or
lease of real property.
8. Discussion or consideration of matters relating
to school safety operations or school safety plans or programs.
9. Discussions or consultations with designated
representatives of the public body in order to discuss security plans,
procedures, assessments, measures or systems relating to, or having an impact
on, the security or safety of buildings, facilities, operations, critical
infrastructure information and information technology maintained by the public
body.� Records, documentation, notes
,
or other
materials made by, or provided to, the representatives pursuant to this
paragraph are confidential and exempt from public disclosure under this chapter
and title 39, chapter 1.
B. Minutes of and discussions made at executive
sessions shall be kept confidential except from:
1. Members of the public body that met in executive
session.
2. Officers, appointees or employees who were the
subject of discussion or consideration pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 1 of
this section.
3. The auditor general on a request made in
connection with an audit authorized as provided by law.
4. A county attorney or the attorney general when
investigating alleged violations of this article.
C. The public body shall instruct persons who are
present at the executive session regarding the confidentiality requirements of
this article.
D. Legal action involving a final vote or decision
shall not be taken at an executive session, except that the public body may
instruct its attorneys or representatives as provided in subsection A,
paragraphs 4, 5 and 7 of this section.� A public vote shall be taken before any
legal action binds the public body.�
A matter that is discussed
in executive session on which the public body must take a final vote or make a
final decision must be placed on the regular agenda and may not be placed on
the consent agenda.
E. Except as provided in section 38-431.02,
subsections I and J, a public body shall not discuss any matter in an executive
session that is not described in the notice of the executive session.
F. Disclosure of executive session information
pursuant to this section or section 38-431.06 does not constitute a
waiver of any privilege, including the attorney-client privilege. Any
person receiving executive session information pursuant to this section or
section 38-431.06 shall not disclose that information except to the
attorney general or county attorney, by agreement with the public body or to a
court in camera for purposes of enforcing this article. Any court that reviews
executive session information shall take appropriate action to protect
privileged information.
G. For the purposes of this section:
1. "Critical infrastructure" has the same
meaning prescribed in section 41-1801.
2. "Information technology" has the same
meaning prescribed in section 18-101.
END_STATUTE
APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR APRIL 13, 2026.
FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE APRIL 13, 2026.