[Michlib-l] Skype for board meetings bylaws

[James Lenze]

I would highly recommend seeking legal advice on this before acting.  However, I was able to find the following which states that remote participation  was permissible under the OMA as recently as March 2015:
http://house.michigan.gov/sessiondocs/2015-2016/testimony/Committee345-3-26-2015.pdf


James B Lenze, Director
Garden City Public Library
jamesl at gardencitymi.org

“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” Martin Luther King, Jr.

From: Steven Bowers<mailto:sbowers at wayne.edu>
Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2017 10:40 AM
To: Amanda Yearling<mailto:ayearling at threeriverslibrary.org>; michlib-l at mcls.org<mailto:michlib-l at mcls.org>
Subject: Re: [Michlib-l] Skype for board meetings bylaws


Last I reviewed ( a couple years ago?) Michigan law allows remote participation in meetings via unspecified technology.  It explicitly does not allow proxy participation (i.e. sending someone else in your stead), which is what some of our Board wanted.  I think it is good to look at the law and you could either mimic the language or write your Bylaw to allow for remote participation by whatever technological means the Board (or chair of a group) specifies for a meeting.  You could specifically state Skype but I like to leave it generic so that if Google Hang Outs or some other technology becomes what your Board prefers you do not have to go back and change the Bylaws again.


I can try and track down the law again if you want.  I just went online.


-Steve


Steven K. Bowers
Executive Director
Detroit Area Library Network

ALA Councilor for the Michigan Library Association
MLA Board of Directors, President Elect


www.dalnet.org<http://www.dalnet.org>


"DALNET is a community of libraries working together to provide access to information for research, cultural enrichment, and lifelong learning opportunities."


________________________________
From: michlib-l-bounces at mcls.org <michlib-l-bounces at mcls.org> on behalf of Amanda Yearling <ayearling at threeriverslibrary.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 18, 2017 6:28 PM
To: michlib-l at mcls.org
Subject: [Michlib-l] Skype for board meetings bylaws


Greetings,



My Director and I are looking into possible Library Board Bylaws that discuss the usage of Skype for library board meetings. We have board members that want to use Skype to participate in meetings when they can’t physically be there. Does anyone have an example of their bylaws that allow Skype as a means of participating in board meetings? Any help is greatly appreciated.



Thank you,



Amanda Yearling
Assistant Director/ Head of Adult and Teen Services
Three Rivers Public Library
ayearling at threeriverslibrary.org
269-273-8666