Higher educational institutions, livestreaming, etc., boards of visitors meetings.

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Higher Education Institutions Must Livestream and Archive Board Meetings

This bill requires Virginia's baccalaureate public higher education institutions to livestream their board meetings in real time and archive recordings with closed captioning for at least five years.

What This Bill Does

• Requires each baccalaureate public institution of higher education to livestream its full board of visitors meetings so the public can watch them live.
• Ensures that recordings of these meetings are made available online within five business days and stay on the school's website for at least five years.
• Includes closed captioning in all meeting recordings to comply with federal disability laws.
• Requires each institution to report its compliance with these rules in an annual summary.

Who It Names or Affects

• Baccalaureate public institutions of higher education in Virginia
• The State Council of Higher Education for Virginia

Terms To Know

baccalaureate public institution of higher education

A college or university that offers bachelor's degrees and is funded by the state.

board of visitors

The governing body for a baccalaureate public institution of higher education in Virginia.

Limits and Unknowns

• This bill does not change rules about closed sessions, which are private meetings.
• The bill becomes effective on July 1, 2027.

Official Summary Text

Baccalaureate public institutions of higher education; livestreaming, recording, and archiving of boards of visitors meetings; closed sessions; guidelines.
Requires each baccalaureate public institution of higher education in the Commonwealth to (i) provide for the livestreaming of each meeting of its full board of visitors in a manner that is accessible to the public in real time and (ii) ensure that recordings of such meetings (a) are made, archived, and made available to the public within five business days following the conclusion of the meeting; (b) remain accessible on the institution's official website for no less than five years from the date of the meeting; and (c) include closed captioning for accessibility and are presented in a format compliant with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The bill requires the board of visitors of each such institution to include a report on the institution's compliance with the foregoing requirements in its statutorily required annual executive summary. The bill also requires the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia to develop and provide to each baccalaureate public institution of higher education guidelines to assist such institutions with complying with the foregoing requirements, including recommendations for technology standards and accessibility features. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

Current Bill Text

A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered
23.1-1303.1
, relating to baccalaureate public institutions of higher education; livestreaming, recording, and archiving of boards of visitors meetings; closed sessions; guidelines.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered
23.1-1303.1
as follows:

§
23.1-1303.1
. Livestreaming
, recording,
and archiving of board
s
of visitors meetings
; closed sessions
; guidelines
.

A. Each
baccalaureate
public institution of higher education shall
:

1. P
rovide for the livestreaming of
each
meeting of its
full
board of visitors

in a manner that is accessible to the public in real time;
and

2.
E
nsure that recordings of such meetings
(i)
are
made,
archived
,
and made available to the public within five business days following the conclusion of the meeting
;
(ii)
remain accessible on the institution's official website for no less than five years from the date of the meeting
;
and (iii)
include closed captioning for accessibility and are presented in a format compliant with
the
federal
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. § 121
0
1 et seq.).

B. Nothing in this
section shall be construed to affect the requirements for closed sessions as set forth in §
§

2.2-3711
and
2.2-3712
.

C
. The Council shall develop and provide
to each
baccalaureate
public institution of higher education
guidelines to assist
such
institutions with complying with the provisions of this section, including recommendations for technology standards and accessibility features.

D
. The board of visitors of each

baccalaureate
public institution of higher education
shall include a report on
the institution's
compliance with
the provisions of
this section in its annual
executive summary
submitted pursuant to
subdivision B 13 of
§
23.1-1303
.

2. That the provisions of this act shall become effective on July 1, 2027.