[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. 
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. 
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. 
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. 
More than 18 months have elapsed since the date of the closed session;
C. 
There is no court order requiring the preservation of such recording; and
D. 
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. 
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)]
B. 
The definition of "meeting" set forth in Subsection A shall supersede and replace any other definition used in any previous or existing ordinance.
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.