From the PNA Legal Hotline

By Melissa Melewsky, Media Law Counsel
Pennsylvania Newspaper Association

Q: A local township canceled its regular Tuesday meeting because of snow. The township secretary sent out an email to local media announcing that the rescheduled meeting would be held the following day. Does this raise Sunshine Act issues?

A: Yes, the emailed notice does not meet the requirements of the Sunshine Act. The townshipcan cure the problem by delaying the meeting for one additional day, and publishing notice at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting.

The Sunshine Act requires agencies to give public notice of each rescheduled regular or special meeting at least 24 hours in advance of the rescheduled meeting time. The public notice required by law must appear in a newspaper of general circulation and must include the date, time and place of rescheduled meeting. The notice cannot be in the form of a news article but must take the form of a public notice advertisement.

The agency must also prominently post the date, time and place of the rescheduled meeting at the agency’s principal office or at the public building in which the meeting is to be held.