UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BRHB 7966/GA AN ACT relating tovideoto teleconferencepublic meetings.agencies.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the CommonwealthofCommonwealth of Kentucky:
SectionSECTION 1.
KRS12.070A isNEW amendedSECTION toreadOF asKRS follows:61.870 TO 61.884 IS CREATED TO READ AS FOLLOWS:
(1) ForA thepublic purposeagency with a board or commission of thisappointed section,or "minority"elected meansmembers Americanshall Indian;publish information on its appointed and elected members on its website for the duration of each member's term, including:
Alaskan(a) native;The name of each member;
African-American;(b) Each member's date of appointment or election;
Hispanic,(c) includingThe personsdate ofthat Mexican,the Puertoterm Rican,of Cuban,each andmember Centralends; or South American origin;
Pacificand islander;(d) An official method to contact each member.
or(2) otherIf ethnica grouppublic underrepresentedagency ondoes statenot boardsandhave commissions.a website, it shall have the information described in subsection (1)(a) to (d) of this section published by a related public agency on its website.
(2) Except as otherwise expressly provided by law, the members of each administrative board or commission shall be citizens of Kentucky appointed by the Governor from the state at large on the basis of their interests in public affairs, their good judgment, and their knowledge and ability in the field of action of the department for which appointed, with a view to providing diversity of interests and points of view in the membership and without regard to their political or religious opinions or affiliations.
(3) Where appointments to administrative boards and commissions are made from lists submitted to him or her, the Governor may reject the list and require that other lists be submitted.
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, in the event the current membership of a board or commission reflects a proportion of the minority group less than the proportion of the minority group in the total population of the Commonwealth, then the Governor may appoint a member of the minority group even if the list of nominees for a vacancy does not include a member of the minority group.
(4) Before entering upon the duties of their office, all members of administrative boards and commissions shall take the oath of office prescribed by Section 228 of the Constitutionof Kentucky.
(5) (a) A board, commission, or similar administrative body may conduct video teleconference meetings in accordance with Section 2 of this Act to allow Page 1 of 5 XXXX 10/2/2025 2:44 PM Jacketed UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 79 members of the public to attend and participate.
(b) 1.
A member of a board, commission, or similar administrative body may attend a meeting virtually through video teleconference unless a decision of the board, commission, or similar administrative body at the meeting:
a.
Would result in an action that implements, interprets, or prescribes law or policy or affects private rights or procedures available to the public;
or b.
Administers or awards funds.
2.
Members who attend a meeting virtually through video teleconference shall not receive reimbursement for travel expenses.
(6) When a board, commission, or similar administrative body is established and no provision is made for compensation of members, members shall serve without pay, but may receive reimbursement for their actual and necessary expenses.
KRS61.826KRS 61.826 is amended toreadto read as follows:
(1) A public agency may conduct any meeting entirely through videoteleconference.publicly available video teleconference to carry out its public business, including but not limited to:
(2)(a) NoticeAdvisory ofactions; a video teleconference meeting shall:
(a)(b) ComplyInformational withthemeetings; requirements of KRS61.820 or 61.823 as appropriate;
(b)(c) ClearlyRendering statethatdecisions on individual cases before the meetingpublic willagency besubject ato videoteleconference;the limitations of KRS 61.810;
(c)and Provide(d) specificApproving informationbusiness ontransactions how any member of thea publicroutine ornature. media organization may view themeeting electronically;
and(2) (d)A In any case where the public agency hasshall electedconvene, toat providea minimum, a physicalquorum location,of ormembers in anyperson, circumstanceand whereallow twoother (2) or more members ofto theattend, publicparticipate, agencyand arevote attendingthrough a video teleconference meetingin fromaccordance thewith sameKRS physical61.805 location,to precisely61.850 identifyfor aany primary physical location of the videofollowing teleconferenceactions: where all members can be seen and heard and the public may attend in accordance withKRS61.840.
Page(a) 2Final ofactions 5establishing XXXXor 10/2/2025modifying 2:44laws PMor Jacketedregulations; UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 79 (3) The same procedures with regard to participation, distribution of materials, and other matters shall apply in all video teleconference locations.
Page 1 of 3 HB006610.100 - 79 - XXXX 2/11/2026 2:25 PM GA UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS HB 66/GA (b) Final actions establishing or modifying taxes;
(c) Approving or denying a nonroutine expenditure;
and (d) Approving or denying an award or grant of public funds in excess of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000).
(3) A public agency shall be exempt from the requirements of subsection (2) of this section during a declared state of emergency.
(4) A public agency may develop policies and procedures to allow members to participate in a meeting using video teleconference, including but not be limited to:
(a) Attendance and participation policies for members of the public agency that attend virtually through video teleconference.
The policies shall at minimum require the members to:
1.
Be considered present and in attendance at the meeting;
2.
Be permitted to vote;
and 3.
Remain visible through his or her camera on the electronic device connected to the video teleconference meeting;
(b) Governing the request, notification, and decision framework process for members to attend virtually through video teleconference for meetings subject to the requirements of this section;
(c) Accommodation of requests received from a member due to:
1.
A temporary or permanent disability or other medical condition of the member that prevents in-person attendance;
and 2.
A personal matter that impedes the ability of the member to participate in person, including but not limited to personal or family emergencies, severe weather conditions, and transportation issues;
and (d) Ensuring that all records and recordings of video teleconference meetings comply with the Open Records Act, KRS 61.870 to 61.884.
Page 2 of 3 HB006610.100 - 79 - XXXX 2/11/2026 2:25 PM GA UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS HB 66/GA (5)[(2)] Notice of a video teleconference meeting shall:
(a) Comply with the requirements of KRS 61.820 or 61.823 as appropriate;
(b) Clearly state that the meeting will be a video teleconference;
(c) Provide specific information on how any member of the public or media organization may view the meeting electronically;
and (d) In any case where the public agency is providing[ has elected to provide] a physical location, in accordance with subsection (2) of this section, or in any circumstance where two (2) or more members of the public agency are attending a video teleconference meeting from the same physical location, precisely identify a primary physical location of the video teleconference where all members can be seen and heard and the public may attend in accordance with KRS 61.840.
(6)[(3)] The same procedures with regard to participation, distribution of materials, and other matters shall apply in all video teleconference locations.
(4)(7)[(4)] Any interruption in the video or audio broadcast of a video teleconference at any location shall result in the suspension of the video teleconference until the broadcast is restored.
(5)(8)[(5)] If a regular meeting is changed to a video conference, the meeting shall remain a regular meeting if the meeting occurs on the same date and time as originally scheduled and the public agency follows the provisions of KRS 61.823(4) to provide a notice that meets the requirements of subsection (2)(b)(5)[(2)](b) to (d) of this section.
(6)Page A3 member of a3 publicHB006610.100 agency- who79 participates- inXXXX a2/11/2026 video2:25 teleconferencePM meetingGA or attends a regular meeting virtually through video teleconference shall not receive reimbursement for travel expenses.
Section 3.
KRS164.004 is amended toread as follows:
(1) The Strategic Committee on Postsecondary Education is hereby created and established.
The committee shall be composed of members appointed by the Council on Postsecondary Education, the Governor, and the General Assembly.
The council's representatives shall consist of the chair of the council, the president of the council, and five (5) members of the council designated by the chair.
The Governor's representatives shall consist of the Governor and six (6) persons designated by the Governor.
The General Assembly's representatives shall consist of the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Majority and Minority Floor Leaders of both chambers of the General Assembly, the minority caucus chair of each chamber, a member appointed by the President of the Senate, a member appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, a Page 3 of 5 XXXX 10/2/2025 2:44 PM Jacketed UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 79 member appointed by the Minority Floor Leader of the Senate, a member appointed by the Minority Floor Leader of the House of Representatives, and the chair of the Committee on Appropriations and Revenue of each chamber.
(2) The chair of the council shall serve as chair of the committee.
The committee shall meet at least quarterly and at other times upon the written call of the chair or of majorities of any two(2) of the three (3) groups that compose the committee.
(3) Nonlegislative members of the committee shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for their actual and necessary expenses, as set forth in KRS 12.070(5) and (6).
Committee members who are Kentucky legislators shall be compensated for attendance at committee meetings from the legislative branch budget bill and as set forthin KRS6.190.
(4) The committee shall serve as a forum for the council and the elected leadership of the Commonwealth to exchange ideas about the future of postsecondary education in Kentucky.
(5) The council shall periodically review its strategic implementation plan for the strategic agenda under KRS 164.0203 and advise the committee of the actions necessary to meet the goals established in KRS 164.003(2).
The elected leaders shall review and comment on the strategic agenda and the timetable for implementation.
(6) The Governor shall advise the committee about the financial condition of the Commonwealth and the probable funds the executive branch intends to recommend tothe General Assembly tobe appropriated for postsecondaryeducation.
(7) The legislative members shall react to the comments of the council and the Governor.
(8) The council shall advise the committee about its opinion of how the postsecondary educationfundsprojected to be available should be allocated based on priorities and projected resources.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to infringe upon the Page 4 of 5 XXXX 10/2/2025 2:44 PM Jacketed UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 79 Governor's duty under KRS 48.100 to recommend appropriations to the General Assembly or upon the General Assembly's power to make final appropriations in the enacted budget.
(9) The committee shall have the advisory authority not explicitly prohibited by law that is necessary to carry out and effectuate its advisory functions, duties, and responsibilities, including the following:
(a) Receive reports from the council on the development and implementation of the long-term strategic agenda, including biennial budget requests for postsecondary educationand any subsequent and related budget requests;
(b) Review the council's proposed objectives and benchmarks for the next fiscal biennium for furthering the Commonwealth's achievement of the goals set out in KRS 164.003(2);
(c) Consider and advise the council on the general budget parameters regarding development of the postsecondarybudget forthe next fiscal biennium;
(d) Review biennial budget requests from the council for the next fiscal biennium including base funding, increases in base funding, and funding for a strategic investment and incentive funding program, including criteria to be used in allocating these fundstoinstitutions;
(e) Receive from the council, at least annually and on a more frequent basis if requested by the committee, accountability reports, budget information, and other information the committee deemsproper;
and (f) Serve as the search committee for the review and consideration of candidates to be presented to the council for the initial appointment to the position of president of the Council on Postsecondary Education.
Each group of the committee shall have one (1) vote on the search committee.
The vote of each group shall be determined by a majority of the members of that group.
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