[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Westville as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted as Ch. 1, Art. V, of the 2015 Code]
The Village shall keep a verbatim record of all closed or executive
session meetings of the corporate authorities of the Village or any
subsidiary "public body" as defined by the Illinois Open Meetings
Act, 5 ILCS 120/1 et seq. The verbatim record shall be in the form
of an audio or video recording as determined by the corporate authorities.
(5 ILCS 120/2)
The Village Clerk or his or her designee shall be responsible
for arranging for the recording of such closed or executive sessions.
In the absence of the Village Clerk or his or her designee, the meeting
Chair will arrange for the audio or video recording of the closed
or executive session of the Village Board. Each subsidiary public
body of the Village shall designate an individual who will be responsible
for the recording of any and all closed or executive sessions of the
subsidiary body and for providing the Village Clerk with a copy of
such recording. The Village Clerk, or his or her designee, shall securely
maintain the verbatim recordings of all closed sessions of the corporate
authorities of the Village and all subsidiary public bodies of the
Village.
In addition to the recordings of the closed and executive session
as addressed in this article, the Village will keep minutes of all
closed meetings in accordance with the requirements of the Open Meetings
Act, 5 ILCS 120/2.06.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
At the beginning of each closed session, those present shall
identify themselves by voice for the audio recording. If the meeting
is video recorded, those present shall individually appear on camera
and identify themselves by voice at the beginning of the closed session.
The meeting Chair shall also announce the times the closed session
commences and ends at the appropriate points on the recording.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
The Village shall maintain sufficient recording supplies, batteries
and equipment for the Village to comply with this article. The Village
Clerk or his/her designee shall periodically check the equipment to
confirm that it is functioning. In the event that anyone present at
a closed session determines that the equipment is not functioning
properly, the closed session will be temporarily suspended to attempt
to correct any malfunction. In the event that an equipment malfunction
cannot be corrected immediately, the closed session will terminate
until such time as the closed session may proceed with a functioning
recording device.
A.Â
At one meeting
at least every six months, the agenda shall include the item: "Review
of the minutes and recordings of all closed sessions that have not
yet been released for public review, and determination of which minutes,
if any, may be released." Minutes shall be reviewed in closed session
and shall not be released unless the corporate authorities of the
Village find that it is no longer necessary to protect the public
interest or the privacy of an individual by keeping them confidential.
As to any minutes not released, the corporate authorities shall find
that the "need for confidentiality still exists" as to those minutes.
Minutes of closed sessions shall be kept indefinitely.
B.Â
Duly elected officials or appointed officials filling a vacancy of an elected office in a public body shall be provided access to minutes of meetings closed to the public. Access to minutes shall be granted in the public body's main office or official storage location, in the presence of a records secretary, an administrative official of the public body, or any elected official of the public body. No minutes of meetings closed to the public shall be removed from the public body's main office or official storage location, except by vote of the public body or by court order. Nothing in this Subsection B is intended to limit the Public Access Counselor's access to those records necessary to address a request for administrative review under 5 ILCS 120/7.5.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
The audio or video recordings of closed sessions shall be maintained
for 18 months after the closed session and shall not be released to
the public unless such release is required by a court order or specifically
authorized for release by a vote of the Village Board. Members of
the corporate authorities may listen to the closed session recordings
in the presence of the Village Clerk or his or her designee. Copies
of such recordings will not be made or provided to anyone unless specifically
authorized by vote of the Village Board.
The Village Clerk or his or her designee is hereby authorized
to destroy the audio and video recordings of those closed sessions
for which:
A.Â
The corporate authorities of the Village have approved the minutes
of the closed sessions as to accurate content, regardless of whether
the minutes have been released for public review;
B.Â
More than 18 months have elapsed since the date of the closed session;
C.Â
There is no court order requiring the preservation of such recording;
and
D.Â
The corporate authorities of the Village have not passed a motion
requiring the preservation of the verbatim recording of that meeting.
[Adopted as Ch. 1, Art. VI, of the 2015 Code]
Pursuant to Public Act 94-1058, which amends the Open Meetings
Act in 5 ILCS 120/7, this municipality does hereby establish a policy
that permits members of the corporate body to attend meetings by means
other than physical presence.
A.Â
The term
"meeting" shall mean any gathering, whether in person or by video
or audio conference, telephone calls, electronic means (such as, without
limitation, electronic mail, electronic chat and instant messaging),
or other means of contemporaneous interactive communication, of a
majority of a quorum of the members of a public body held for the
purpose of discussing public business, or such other definition as
shall be contained within the state statutes.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
The Village hereby adopts the Remote Participation Policy, as
outlined in Addendum A,[1] which permits a member of the public body to attend and
participate in any meeting of a public body, as defined in the Open
Meetings Act, from a remote location via telephone, video, or internet
connection, provided that such attendance and participation is in
compliance with the policy and any applicable laws.
[1]
Editor's Note: Addendum A is included as an attachment to this chapter.
