For some cause, the state’s Open Assembly Legislation could qualify because the least understood among the many state’s statutes, even for the elected municipal and different native boards certain by its language.
Designed to make sure authorities transparency and accountability, the regulation requires that the majority conferences of public our bodies be carried out overtly, in order that residents could have entry to deliberations.
However yearly, both by ignorance or conceitedness, the Lawyer Normal’s Workplace receives lots of of perceived violations from people and organizations.
That development continued in 2025.
AG Andrea Campbell’s workplace acquired 395 Open Assembly Legislation complaints, up from the 364 complaints filed in 2024, in line with a report the workplace’s Division of Open Authorities. Of the 395 complaints the division acquired, 306 had been resolved by determinations or declinations.
Because it has achieved since 2010, the Division works to make sure that public our bodies conduct enterprise in a clear method.
The report notes the Division was notified of 703 complaints filed with public our bodies that weren’t formally filed with the AG’s workplace. That’s most likely as a result of the complainant was glad with the general public physique’s response to their criticism, or they understood that the problems raised didn’t fall underneath the OML, in line with the report.
State regulation requires public our bodies to inform the AG’s workplace once they obtain OML complaints. A criticism isn’t thought-about filed with the open authorities division till the complainant requests that the AG’s workplace assessment their criticism additional.
The Division discovered violations in about 56% of the complaints filed in 2025, up from 54% reported in 2024. Whereas many complaints alleged a number of separate violations of the OML, when contemplating every violation individually, the violation charge drops to 46%, in line with the report.
Essentially the most steadily occurring violations in 2025 had been:
Insufficiently particular assembly discover.
Inaccurate/insufficiently detailed assembly minutes.
Deliberation outdoors of a posted assembly.
Convening in government session for improper objective.
Conferences not accessible to the general public.
The remedial actions most steadily ordered by the Division had been:
Fast and future compliance with the OML.
Create, approve or amend assembly minutes.
Evaluation and launch government session minutes.
The Division did acquire a complete of $1,350 in fines from the six public our bodies it discovered had deliberately violated the regulation in 2025, in line with the report.
The Division’s main aim is to make sure that all public our bodies perceive and adjust to the OML. To assist meet this aim, in 2025, the Division skilled greater than 1,220 individuals on the regulation’s necessities and hosted 19 public webinars. Moreover, the Division acquired and responded to roughly 1,482 inquiries to its helpline.
People who imagine a public physique has violated the OML can entry a criticism type on the AGO web site. Extra questions could also be directed to the Division by calling 617-963-2540, or by emailing openmeeting@mass.gov.
It’s extremely doubtless many extra OML violations flew underneath the radar. That’s as a result of it falls on a conscientious native authorities follower who’s additionally aware of that statute to provoke a criticism.
That’s why it primarily rests with public officers to police themselves.
Sentinel and Enterprise
