The Connecticut Freedom of Information Act: what every meeting needs
Every local board in Connecticut, from the board of selectmen or council to an advisory commission, follows the same law: a yearly schedule of regular meetings filed with the town clerk, an agenda filed before each regular meeting or a notice before each special one, each member's vote in writing, and minutes open to the public soon after the meeting.
Clarivis is software that helps a board follow these steps: it counts the deadline for each meeting's agenda or notice, shows when each regular meeting's minutes are due and drafts the minutes for your board to correct and approve; it does not file or post anything for you.
Request a pilotChecklist, stage by stage
What the law asks at each point in a meeting’s life. Each stage links to the full guide, with the statute quoted.
Each year
- By January 31, the chair or secretary files the board's schedule of regular meetings for the year with the town clerk. (§ 1-225(b))
Before each meeting
- Regular meeting: the agenda is filed in the board's office and with the town clerk at least 24 hours before the meeting. (§ 1-225(c))
- Special meeting: a notice of the time, place and business is filed with the town clerk, and posted on the board's website if it has one, at least 24 hours before the meeting, not counting Saturdays, Sundays, legal holidays or days the office is closed. (§ 1-225(d), (g))
- Before a regular meeting held fully or partly online, each member is notified in writing or by email, and a notice that the meeting will be held online is posted in the board's office, with the town clerk and on the board's website if it has one, at least 48 hours ahead. The agenda is posted in the same places at least 24 hours ahead, with instructions for the public on how to attend and, where comment is allowed, to comment. (§ 1-225a)
Between meetings
- A quorum of members does not meet in person, by phone or by video to discuss the board's business outside a noticed meeting; the safe course is to keep email and texts among members to scheduling. (§ 1-200(1), (2))
At the meeting
- An item not on a regular meeting's filed agenda is taken up only if two-thirds of the members present and voting agree. A special meeting takes up only the business in its notice. (§ 1-225(c), § 1-225(d), (g))
- An executive session is held only for a purpose the law lists, on a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting, taken in public and stating the reasons. (§ 1-200(6), § 1-225(f))
Members joining by phone or video
- A vote with a member taking part by phone or video is taken by roll call unless it is unanimous, and a meeting held only online, other than a special meeting, is recorded or transcribed. (§ 1-225a)
After the meeting
- Each member's vote is in writing and open to the public within 48 hours, and is recorded in the minutes. (§ 1-225(a))
- Minutes are open to public inspection within 7 days of the meeting. A town board does not have to post its minutes on a website; it may. (§ 1-225(a))
Connecticut guides
- Connecticut meeting agendas and notices: the yearly schedule, and what to file before each meetingThe yearly schedule, the regular agenda, the special notice, the 24-hour count
- The yearly meeting schedule in Connecticut: what a board files by January 31The January 31 filing and the 30-day wait
- Connecticut meeting minutes and votes: what they must include and when they are dueMinutes within 7 days, each member's vote within 48 hours
- Executive session in Connecticut: when a board can meet in private, and what followsThe five purposes, the two-thirds vote, who attends, the minutes
- What counts as a meeting in Connecticut: quorum, email and chance encountersQuorum, email, and what the law leaves out
- Online and phone meetings in Connecticut: notice, public access and recordingOnline meetings: notice, public access, votes and recording