Enrolled Copy S.B. 219
1 SCHOOL ACTIVITY ELIGIBILITY COMMISSION MODIFICATIONS
2024 GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Michael S. Kennedy House Sponsor: Kera Birkeland
2
3 LONG TITLE
4 General Description:
5 This bill amends provisions related to the operation of the School Activity Eligibility
6 Commission.
7 Highlighted Provisions:
8 This bill:
9 ▸ amends the Open and Public Meetings Act to:
10 ● expressly exempt a meeting of the School Activity Eligibility Commission
11 (commission) to discuss the eligibility of a specific student from the open meetings
12 requirement; and
13 ● remove a meeting of the commission to discuss the eligibility of a specific student
14 from the list of reasons to close a public meeting;
15 ▸ prohibits the commission from discussing a specific student's eligibility in a public
16 meeting;
17 ▸ expands the records that are classified as protected records under the Government
18 Records Access and Management Act in relation to a specific student's eligibility;
19 ▸ amends provisions to ensure that an athletic association serves to pass communications
20 between students, parents, or schools and the commission;
21 ▸ clarifies an indemnification provision; and
22 ▸ makes technical and conforming changes.
23 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
24 None
25 Other Special Clauses:
26 None
27 Utah Code Sections Affected:
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28 AMENDS:
29 52-4-201, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2006, Chapter 263 and renumbered and
30 amended by Laws of Utah 2006, Chapter 14
31 52-4-205, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2023, Chapters 263, 328, 374, and 521
32 53G-6-1003, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapter 478
33 53G-6-1004, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2022, Chapter 478
34 53G-6-1007, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2022, Third Special Session, Chapter 1
35
36 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
37 Section 1. Section 52-4-201 is amended to read:
38 52-4-201 . Meetings open to the public -- Exceptions.
39 (1) A meeting is open to the public unless[ ] :
40 (a) closed under Sections 52-4-204, 52-4-205, and 52-4-206[.] ; or
41 (b) the meeting is solely for the School Activity Eligibility Commission, described in
42 Section 53G-6-1003, if the commission is in effect in accordance with Section
43 53G-6-1002, to consider, discuss, or determine, in accordance with Section
44 53G-6-1004, an individual student's eligibility to participate in an interscholastic
45 activity, as that term is defined in Section 53G-6-1001, including the commission's
46 determinative vote on the student's eligibility.
47 (2) (a) A meeting that is open to the public includes a workshop or an executive session
48 of a public body in which a quorum is present, unless closed in accordance with this
49 chapter.
50 (b) A workshop or an executive session of a public body in which a quorum is present
51 that is held on the same day as a regularly scheduled public meeting of the public
52 body may only be held at the location where the public body is holding the regularly
53 scheduled public meeting unless:
54 (i) the workshop or executive session is held at the location where the public body
55 holds its regularly scheduled public meetings but, for that day, the regularly
56 scheduled public meeting is being held at different location;
57 (ii) any of the meetings held on the same day is a site visit or a traveling tour and, in
58 accordance with this chapter, public notice is given;
59 (iii) the workshop or executive session is an electronic meeting conducted according
60 to the requirements of Section 52-4-207; or
61 (iv) it is not practicable to conduct the workshop or executive session at the regular
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62 location of the public body's open meetings due to an emergency or extraordinary
63 circumstances.
64 Section 2. Section 52-4-205 is amended to read:
65 52-4-205 . Purposes of closed meetings -- Certain issues prohibited in closed
66 meetings.
67 (1) A closed meeting described under Section 52-4-204 may only be held for:
68 (a) except as provided in Subsection (3), discussion of the character, professional
69 competence, or physical or mental health of an individual;
70 (b) strategy sessions to discuss collective bargaining;
71 (c) strategy sessions to discuss pending or reasonably imminent litigation;
72 (d) strategy sessions to discuss the purchase, exchange, or lease of real property,
73 including any form of a water right or water shares, or to discuss a proposed
74 development agreement, project proposal, or financing proposal related to the
75 development of land owned by the state, if public discussion would:
76 (i) disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the property under consideration; or
77 (ii) prevent the public body from completing the transaction on the best possible
78 terms;
79 (e) strategy sessions to discuss the sale of real property, including any form of a water
80 right or water shares, if:
81 (i) public discussion of the transaction would:
82 (A) disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the property under consideration;
83 or
84 (B) prevent the public body from completing the transaction on the best possible
85 terms;
86 (ii) the public body previously gave public notice that the property would be offered
87 for sale; and
88 (iii) the terms of the sale are publicly disclosed before the public body approves the
89 sale;
90 (f) discussion regarding deployment of security personnel, devices, or systems;
91 (g) investigative proceedings regarding allegations of criminal misconduct;
92 (h) as relates to the Independent Legislative Ethics Commission, conducting business
93 relating to the receipt or review of ethics complaints;
94 (i) as relates to an ethics committee of the Legislature, a purpose permitted under
95 Subsection 52-4-204(1)(a)(iii)(C);
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96 (j) as relates to the Independent Executive Branch Ethics Commission created in Section
97 63A-14-202, conducting business relating to an ethics complaint;
98 (k) as relates to a county legislative body, discussing commercial information as defined
99 in Section 59-1-404;
100 (l) as relates to the Utah Higher Education Savings Board of Trustees and its appointed
101 board of directors, discussing fiduciary or commercial information;
102 (m) deliberations, not including any information gathering activities, of a public body
103 acting in the capacity of:
104 (i) an evaluation committee under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code,
105 during the process of evaluating responses to a solicitation, as defined in Section
106 63G-6a-103;
107 (ii) a protest officer, defined in Section 63G-6a-103, during the process of making a
108 decision on a protest under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Part 16, Protests; or
109 (iii) a procurement appeals panel under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement
110 Code, during the process of deciding an appeal under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Part
111 17, Procurement Appeals Board;
112 (n) the purpose of considering information that is designated as a trade secret, as defined
113 in Section 13-24-2, if the public body's consideration of the information is necessary
114 to properly conduct a procurement under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement
115 Code;
116 (o) the purpose of discussing information provided to the public body during the
117 procurement process under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code, if, at the
118 time of the meeting:
119 (i) the information may not, under Title 63G, Chapter 6a, Utah Procurement Code, be
120 disclosed to a member of the public or to a participant in the procurement process;
121 and
122 (ii) the public body needs to review or discuss the information to properly fulfill its
123 role and responsibilities in the procurement process;
124 (p) as relates to the governing board of a governmental nonprofit corporation, as that
125 term is defined in Section 11-13a-102, the purpose of discussing information that is
126 designated as a trade secret, as that term is defined in Section 13-24-2, if:
127 (i) public knowledge of the discussion would reasonably be expected to result in
128 injury to the owner of the trade secret; and
129 (ii) discussion of the information is necessary for the governing board to properly
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130 discharge the board's duties and conduct the board's business;
131 (q) as it relates to the Cannabis Production Establishment Licensing Advisory Board, to
132 review confidential information regarding violations and security requirements in
133 relation to the operation of cannabis production establishments;
134 (r) considering a loan application, if public discussion of the loan application would
135 disclose:
136 (i) nonpublic personal financial information; or
137 (ii) a nonpublic trade secret, as defined in Section 13-24-2, or nonpublic business
138 financial information the disclosure of which would reasonably be expected to
139 result in unfair competitive injury to the person submitting the information;
140 (s) a discussion of the board of the Point of the Mountain State Land Authority, created
141 in Section 11-59-201, regarding a potential tenant of point of the mountain state land,
142 as defined in Section 11-59-102; or
143 (t) a purpose for which a meeting is required to be closed under Subsection (2).
144 (2) The following meetings shall be closed:
145 (a) a meeting of the Health and Human Services Interim Committee to review a report
146 described in Subsection 26B-1-506(1)(a), and the responses to the report described in
147 Subsections 26B-1-506(2) and (4);
148 (b) a meeting of the Child Welfare Legislative Oversight Panel to:
149 (i) review a report described in Subsection 26B-1-506(1)(a), and the responses to the
150 report described in Subsections 26B-1-506(2) and (4); or
151 (ii) review and discuss an individual case, as described in Subsection 36-33-103(2);
152 (c) a meeting of the Opioid and Overdose Fatality Review Committee, created in Section
153 26B-1-403, to review and discuss an individual case, as described in Subsection
154 26B-1-403(10);
155 (d) a meeting of a conservation district as defined in Section 17D-3-102 for the purpose
156 of advising the Natural Resource Conservation Service of the United States
157 Department of Agriculture on a farm improvement project if the discussed
158 information is protected information under federal law;
159 (e) a meeting of the Compassionate Use Board established in Section 26B-1-421 for the
160 purpose of reviewing petitions for a medical cannabis card in accordance with
161 Section 26B-1-421;
162 (f) a meeting of the Colorado River Authority of Utah if:
163 (i) the purpose of the meeting is to discuss an interstate claim to the use of the water
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164 in the Colorado River system; and
165 (ii) failing to close the meeting would:
166 (A) reveal the contents of a record classified as protected under Subsection
167 63G-2-305(82);
168 (B) reveal a legal strategy relating to the state's claim to the use of the water in the
169 Colorado River system;
170 (C) harm the ability of the Colorado River Authority of Utah or river
171 commissioner to negotiate the best terms and conditions regarding the use of
172 water in the Colorado River system; or
173 (D) give an advantage to another state or to the federal government in negotiations
174 regarding the use of water in the Colorado River system;
175 (g) a meeting of the General Regulatory Sandbox Program Advisory Committee if:
176 (i) the purpose of the meeting is to discuss an application for participation in the
177 regulatory sandbox as defined in Section 63N-16-102; and
178 (ii) failing to close the meeting would reveal the contents of a record classified as
179 protected under Subsection 63G-2-305(83); and
180 (h) a meeting of a project entity if:
181 (i) the purpose of the meeting is to conduct a strategy session to discuss market
182 conditions relevant to a business decision regarding the value of a project entity
183 asset if the terms of the business decision are publicly disclosed before the
184 decision is finalized and a public discussion would:
185 (A) disclose the appraisal or estimated value of the project entity asset under
186 consideration; or
187 (B) prevent the project entity from completing on the best possible terms a
188 contemplated transaction concerning the project entity asset;
189 (ii) the purpose of the meeting is to discuss a record, the disclosure of which could
190 cause commercial injury to, or confer a competitive advantage upon a potential or
191 actual competitor of, the project entity;
192 (iii) the purpose of the meeting is to discuss a business decision, the disclosure of
193 which could cause commercial injury to, or confer a competitive advantage upon a
194 potential or actual competitor of, the project entity; or
195 (iv) failing to close the meeting would prevent the project entity from getting the best
196 price on the market[; and] .
197 [(i) a meeting of the School Activity Eligibility Commission, described in Section
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198 53G-6-1003, if the commission is in effect in accordance with Section 53G-6-1002,
199 to consider, discuss, or determine, in accordance with Section 53G-6-1004, an
200 individual student's eligibility to participate in an interscholastic activity, as that term
201 is defined in Section 53G-6-1001, including the commission's determinative vote on
202 the student's eligibility.]
203 (3) In a closed meeting, a public body may not:
204 (a) interview a person applying to fill an elected position;
205 (b) discuss filling a midterm vacancy or temporary absence governed by Title 20A,
206 Chapter 1, Part 5, Candidate Vacancy and Vacancy and Temporary Absence in
207 Elected Office; or
208 (c) discuss the character, professional competence, or physical or mental health of the
209 person whose name was submitted for consideration to fill a midterm vacancy or
210 temporary absence governed by Title 20A, Chapter 1, Part 5, Candidate Vacancy and
211 Vacancy and Temporary Absence in Elected Office.
212 Section 3. Section 53G-6-1003 is amended to read:
213 53G-6-1003 . School Activity Eligibility Commission -- Baseline range.
214 (1) There is created the School Activity Eligibility Commission.
215 (2) (a) The commission shall consist of the following members:
216 (i) the following two members whom the president of the Senate appoints:
217 (A) a mental health professional; and
218 (B) a statistician with expertise in the analysis of medical data;
219 (ii) the following two members whom the speaker of the House of Representatives
220 appoints:
221 (A) a board-certified physician with expertise in gender identity healthcare; and
222 (B) a sports physiologist;
223 (iii) the following two members whom the governor appoints:
224 (A) a representative of an athletic association; and
225 (B) an athletic trainer who serves student athletes on the collegiate level; and
226 (iv)