Last month, a New Jersey assemblyman introduced a bill that would require county-level public bodies to set aside time for public comment in their meetings. In January, he pre-filed a separate bill that would apply the same to school boards and municipal level bodies.

Assemblyman Erik Peterson proposed the changes the state’s Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act. The change would require the public bodies to “set aside a portion of every meeting” to allow for comment on anything that “a member of the public feels may be of concern to the residents.”

The school board bill specifies that the period can be no less than three minutes per speaker. “Should the portion of the meeting dedicated to public comment exceed the scheduled length of the meeting itself, no vote shall be taken on the subject of the comment until the next meeting, at which time the public comment shall resume until all interested members of the public have had opportunity to comment on the subject,” the bill reads. Both bills have been introduced but have not yet progressed through their respective committees.

Posted: October 12, 2026
Category: Brechner News
Tagged as: Secrecy Tracker