11 Wait a Minutes! Do your minutes measure up? Board meeting minutes matter. Minutes have specific guidelines (see Open and Public Meetings Act, Utah Code Title 52-4-203). Think of minutes like the evening news sports report of a basketball game. If the report only included the final score, you wouldn’t have a complete picture of the game. The equivalent in minutes would be just a listing of the votes of any given board action. The sports report often includes video highlights of important plays during the game. In meeting minutes, this would be a synopsis of important points in the discussion. Board minutes do not need to be a transcription of everything that occurred. They should however be complete enough for someone to understand the substance of the discussion. And just as a sports report includes listing key players in the game or out with injuries, minutes reflect meeting attendees and those absent. For big sports fans who want to know every detail of the game, they can go back and watch it in full. An audio recording is required for each open meeting so that if you want to know all the details they are available to you. To be complete, minutes taken during an open meeting: • Include the date, time, and place of the meeting. • Include full names of members present and absent. • Include substance of all matters proposed, discussed, or decided. • Include individual votes by name for each action item. (Don’t just write “unanimous.”) • Include the name of members of the public attending who provide comments. • Include any other information requested by a board member to be entered into the minutes or recording. • Include any information (electronic or hard copy) relating to the agenda provided by an individual at the meeting to be put in the public record. After the open meeting: • Pending minutes must be made available to the public within 30 days of the open meeting. • Approved minutes must be available to the public within 3 days after having been approved. • Minutes must be posted on Public Meeting Notice website (https://www.utah.gov/pmn/) with any materials distributed at the meeting and on the school’s website. • Minutes must be available at school’s primary office with any materials distributed at the meeting. • Within three business days after the meeting, post a RECORDING on the PMN website of the meeting, or a link to the recording. If you have a well-crafted meeting agenda, then your minutes should be simple to complete. Minutes are a great way to get new board members up to speed on the happenings at your school. They can look at previous minutes to avoid repeating issues that have already been addressed. However, they can only see the reasoning of a decision if the minutes highlight the discussion well. It is also a good idea to make sure you document any trainings that are included as part of a board meeting. By uploading your agenda, minutes and recordings to the PMN, you have a great board document storage plan that will endure after board member turnover. The only thing you will need to keep track of is your closed session recordings. The PMN records when documents are uploaded so state agencies can retroactively monitor if you are in compliance. Minutes matter, dare we say more than a sporting event? When your minutes are complete, compliant, and available, you’ll feel like a champion!
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