File: BEDG - Minutes

NOTE: While Colorado school districts are not required by law to adopt a policy on this subject, some content in this sample reflects legal requirements school districts must follow. This sample contains the content/language that CASB believes best meets the intent of the law. However, the district should consult with its own legal counsel to determine appropriate language that meets local circumstances and needs.

Minutes of any Board meeting at which the adoption of any policy or formal action occurs or could occur shall be taken and promptly recorded. Such records shall be open to public inspection.

Official minutes of the meetings of the Board of Education constitute the written record of all proceedings of the Board. Therefore, the minutes shall include:

1. The nature of the meeting, whether regular or special; time and place; members present; approval of the minutes of the preceding meeting or meetings.

2. A record of all actions taken by the Board, the motion, the name of the member making the motion and seconding it; the record of the vote, with the vote of each member recorded. If a vote is taken by secret ballot, the outcome of the vote shall be recorded contemporaneously in the minutes. Reports and documents related to a formal motion may be omitted if they are referred to by title and date.

3. A record of all business that comes before the Board through reports of the superintendent and others and through communications from the staff and the public.

4. The names of all persons who speak before the Board and the topic of their remarks.

5. A record that an executive session was held (if the Board convened in executive session), including the names of those present and the topic of discussion, unless including names of individuals would reveal information that should remain confidential, the specific citation to the statute that authorizes the Board to meet in executive session, and the amount of time the topic was discussed.

6. The record of adjournment.

The official minutes shall be signed by the secretary. Following their approval, the official copy also shall be signed by the president of the Board of Education.

The official minutes shall be in the custody of the Board secretary and shall be made available to the public in accordance with the requirements of applicable state law.

(Adoption date)

LEGAL REFS.: C.R.S. 22-32-106 (duties of the secretary)

C.R.S. 22-32-108 (5)(d) (board meetings - executive session minutes)

C.R.S. 22-32-109 (1)(e) (specific duties of the board)

C.R.S. 24-6-402 (2)(d)(II) (open meetings law - minutes)

C.R.S. 24-6-402 (2)(d)(IV) (outcome of a secret ballot vote must be recorded contemporaneously in the minutes)

NOTE: State law requires the minutes of any Board meeting at which the Board convenes in executive session to be posted on the Board's website not later than 10 business days following the meeting at which the minutes are approved by the Board. C.R.S. 22-32-108 (5)(d). If the Board does not maintain a website, the minutes "must be published in the same manner as the [B]oard regularly provides public notice." Id. The law doesn't specify the length of time that the minutes must remain "posted" or "published." At a minimum, CASB suggests keeping the minutes posted/published for at least 90 days following the meeting at which the executive session occurred. This way, the timeline for posting/publishing is the same as the statutory timeline for the retention of electronic recordings of executive sessions. See, C.R.S. 22-32-108 (5)(d); 24-6-402 (2)(d.5)(II)(E).

[Revised June 2014]