Requires public participation be allowed as component of certain public meetings.

S4116 SCS

SENATE COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR

SENATE, No. 4116

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�
ADOPTED
JUNE 1, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� DOUGLAS J. STEINHARDT

District 23 (Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren)

Senator� PARKER SPACE

District 24 (Morris, Sussex and Warren)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Moriarty

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires public participation be allowed as component
of certain public meetings.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Substitute as adopted by the Senate Community and
Urban Affairs Committee.

��

An Act
requiring public participation be allowed as a
component of certain public meetings and amending P.L.1975, c.231.

����
Be It Enacted

by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.�� Section 7 of P.L.1975,
c.231 (C.10:4-12) is amended to read as follows:

���� 7.��� a.� Except as provided
by subsection b. of this section all meetings of public bodies shall be open to
the public at all times.� Nothing in
[
this
act
]

P.L.1975,
c.231 (C.10:4-6 et seq.)
shall be construed to limit the discretion of a
public body to permit, prohibit, or regulate the active participation of the
public at any meeting, except that a municipal governing body
, a
board of county commissioners,
any board,
commission, or entity of, or created by, a board of county commissioners
,
and a board of education shall be required to
set aside a portion of every meeting of the
[
municipal
governing body or board of education,
]

respective entity
the length of the portion to be determined by the
[
municipal
governing body or board of education
]

respective entity
, for public comment on any
[
governmental or school district
]
issue that a
member of the public feels may be of concern to the residents of the
[
municipality
or school district
]

respective entity
.

���� b.��� A public body may
exclude the public only from that portion of a meeting at which the public body
discusses any:

���� (1)� matter which, by express
provision of federal law, State statute, or rule of court shall be rendered
confidential or excluded from the provisions of subsection a. of this section;

���� (2)� matter in which the
release of information would impair a right to receive funds from the
Government of the United States;

���� (3)� material the disclosure
of which constitutes an unwarranted invasion of individual privacy such as any
records, data, reports, recommendations, or other personal material of any
educational, training, social service, medical, health, custodial, child protection,
rehabilitation, legal defense, welfare, housing, relocation, insurance, and
similar program or institution operated by a public body pertaining to any
specific individual admitted to or served by an institution or program,
including but not limited to, information relative to the individual's personal
and family circumstances, and any material pertaining to admission, discharge,
treatment, progress, or condition of any individual, unless the individual
concerned (or, in the case of a minor or an incapacitated individual, the
individual's guardian) shall request in writing that the material be disclosed
publicly;

���� (4)� collective bargaining
agreement, or the terms and conditions which are proposed for inclusion in any
collective bargaining agreement, including the negotiation of the terms and
conditions thereof with employees or representatives of employees of the public
body;

���� (5)� matter involving the
purchase, lease, or acquisition of real property with public funds, the setting
of banking rates, or investment of public funds, if it could adversely affect
the public interest if discussion of the matters were disclosed;

���� (6)� tactics and techniques
utilized in protecting the safety and property of the public, provided that
their disclosure could impair that protection, or investigations of violations
or possible violations of the law;

���� (7)� pending or anticipated
litigation or contract negotiation other than in subsection b. (4) herein in
which the public body is, or may become, a party, or matters falling within the
attorney-client privilege, to the extent that confidentiality is required in
order for the attorney to exercise his ethical duties as a lawyer;

���� (8)� matter involving the
employment, appointment, termination of employment, terms and conditions of
employment, evaluation of the performance of, promotion, or disciplining of any
specific prospective public officer or employee or current public officer or employee
employed or appointed by the public body, unless all the individual employees
or appointees whose rights could be adversely affected request in writing that
the matter or matters be discussed at a public meeting; or

���� (9)� deliberations of a public
body occurring after a public hearing that may result in the imposition of a
specific civil penalty upon the responding party or the suspension or loss of a
license or permit belonging to the responding party as a result of an act or
omission for which the responding party bears responsibility.

(cf: P.L.2013, c.103, s.57)

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.