Recently, the Oregon Senate passed the Education Board Transparency Act (Senate Bill 1502) with bipartisan support. The bill requires that education boards of public school districts, community colleges, and universities video record their meetings and upload those recordings for the public to view online.
The bill exempts school districts with fewer than 50 students and provides that school districts that lack adequate internet access can comply by uploading an audio recording instead. The requirement to record does not apply to meetings that aren’t already public under Oregon’s public meeting law, such as executive sessions.
“This bill will improve the transparency of our education boards, grant greater access to busy parents and community members, and promote equity by ensuring everyone can stay engaged,” said Senate President Rob Wagner (D-Lake Oswego), co-chief sponsor of SB 1502. “I’m grateful to my Republican colleagues who worked with me to ensure this bill will improve transparency across the state without overburdening our small school districts.”
“I believe increasing accessibility to government processes at all levels will lead to greater accountability and transparency to the public,” said Sen. Kim Thatcher (R-Keizer), co-sponsor of SB 1502. “We need more of this, which is why I am pleased to have voted in favor of this bill.”
The bill now moves to the Oregon House of Representatives for consideration.
