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CHAPTER 7 C. Technology Moberg v.inaep.Soh.Dist.No. It is not entirely clear how the open meeting law applies to technology, 198 );S e League re(Minn. such as e-mail or telephone calls.Although the law does not specifically 1983);See League research p � p )' memo,Meetings of 04{ address the use of e-mail and other technology,it is likely that any form of Councils(140B.1),for more communication between councilmembers or members of other public information. bodies could violate the open meeting law under certain circumstances. As a result,city councils and other public bodies should not use e-mail, telephone calls,and other technology to communicate with other members of the public body when both of the following circumstances exits: • When a quorum of the council or public body will be contacted regarding the same matter. • When city businesses is being discussed. 4. Open meeting exceptions The open meeting law is designed to favor public access.Therefore,the few exceptions that do exist are carefully limited to avoid abuse. Minn.Stal.§§ 13D.01,subd.3; Before closing a meeting under any of the following exceptions,the public 13D.04,subd.5;See The Free Press v.Count),of Blue Earth, body must state on the record the specific grounds that permit the meeting 6771v.w.2d 471(Minn.Ct. to be closed and describe the subject to be discussed. The same notice App.2004)(holding that the requirements that apply to open meetings also apply to closed meetings. county's statement that it was closing a meeting under the attomey-client privilege to discuss"pending litigation"did not satisfy the requirement of describing the subject to be discussed at the closed meeting). a. Labor negotiations Minn.Stat.§ 13D.03,subd.1 The city council may,by majority vote in a public meeting,decide to hold a (b)' closed meeting to consider its strategy for labor negotiations,including negotiation strategies or developments,or discussion of labor negotiation proposals.The council must announce the time and place of the closed meeting at the public meeting. Minn.Stat.§ 1313.03,subds.1 After the closed meeting,a written record of all members of the city (d),2. council and all other people present must be available to the public. The council must tape-record the proceedings at city expense,and preserve the tape for two years after signing the contract. The tape-recording must be available to the public after all labor contracts are signed for the current budget period. HANDBOOK FOR MINNESOTA CITIES 7-13 This chapter last revised 12/14/2004