Regents' Policy Manual - Section 1.3: Public Notice of Regents' Meetings

Adopted Date: 09-12-1996
Amended: 12-08-1998
Amended: 03-11-2002
Amended: 09-09-2003
Amended: 03-14-2005
Amended: 06-12-2012
Amended: 05-01-2013
Amended: 05-01-2014
Amended: 12-13-2016

1. Policy 

This policy is adopted pursuant to the New Mexico Open Meetings Act, NMSA 1978, § 10-15-1, et seq.

2. Regular Meetings

Regular meetings of the Board of Regents will be held on the second Monday in March and at regular pre-announced intervals, which are generally monthly, unless otherwise announced in the Notice of Regular Meetings pursuant to this policy.

Notice of Regular Meetings

Notice to the public of the regular meetings of the Board of Regents will specify the date, time, and place thereof and will state that a copy of the agenda will be made available on the public regents.unm.edu website, at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting. Notice will be given to those newspapers and broadcast stations that have filed a written request with the University Communication and Marketing Department for such notices of meetings. Notice will be by email at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting and the written Notice will be placed on the public regents.unm.edu website.

3. Special Meetings

Special meetings of the Board of Regents may be called by the Board President or any four (4) members of the Board.

Notice of Special Meetings

Notice to the public of special meetings of the Board of Regents will specify the date, time, and place thereof and will state that a copy of the agenda will be made available on the public regents.unm.edu website, at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting. Notice will be given to those newspapers and broadcast stations that have filed a written request with the University Communication and Marketing Department for such notices of meetings. Notice will be by email at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting and the written notice will be placed on the public regents.unm.edu website.

4. Emergency Meetings

Emergency meetings of the Board of Regents may be called by the Board President or any four (4) members of the Board only in the event of unforeseen circumstances that, if not addressed immediately by the Board, will likely result in injury or damage to persons or property or substantial financial loss to the University. The Board will avoid emergency meetings whenever possible.

Notice of Emergency Meetings 

Notice to the public of emergency meetings of the Board of Regents will specify the date, time, place, and subject matter thereof and will be given to those newspapers and broadcast stations that have filed a written request with the University Communication and Marketing Department for such notices of meetings. Notice will be by email, at least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the meeting or by such other notice as soon as possible and as may be practicable under the circumstances.

Report to the New Mexico Attorney General 

Within five (5) days of taking action on an emergency matter, the Board of Regents shall report to the New Mexico Attorney General's Office the action taken and the circumstances creating the emergency.

5. Compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act

In addition to the information specified above, all notices shall include the following language:

If you are an individual with a disability who is in need of a reader, amplifier, qualified sign language interpreter, or any other form of auxiliary aid or service to attend or participate in a meeting of the Board of Regents, please contact the University Communication and Marketing Department with as much advance notice as possible to allow for arranged services. Public documents, including the agenda and minutes, can be provided in various accessible formats. Please contact the University Communication and Marketing Department if an accessible format is needed.

6. Remote Participation in Meetings 

A member of the Board of Regents may participate in a regular, special, or emergency meeting of the Board by means of a conference telephone or other similar communications equipment when it is otherwise difficult or impossible for the member to attend the meeting in person. Each member participating remotely must be identified when speaking, all participants must be able to hear each other at the same time, and members of the public attending the meeting must be able to hear any member of the Board who speaks during the meeting. The minutes of any meeting at which there is remote participation shall identify any Regents who were not physically present but who participated remotely.

7. Closed Meetings (Executive Sessions)

Exceptions to Open Meetings Act 

Meetings of the Board of Regents may be closed, according to the procedures set out below, only if the matter to be considered falls within one of the enumerated exceptions defined in § 10-15-1(H) of the Open Meetings Act or if closure can be implied from or required by other laws or constitutional principles which specifically or necessarily preserve the confidentiality of certain information.

Closing an Open Meeting 

Closing of a meeting shall be by a majority vote of a quorum of the Board during the open meeting, with the vote of each member being recorded. The motion shall state: (1) the authority for the closure (the statutory provision); and (2) the subject to be discussed with reasonable specificity. The matter to be discussed must have been included on the agenda, except for emergency matters.

Calling a Closed Meeting Outside of an Open Meeting

Notice that a meeting will be closed, in whole or in part, will be given as specified above for a regular, special or emergency meeting, as appropriate, by so specifying either in the notice of the meeting or on the agenda. The notice shall state the specific provision of the law authorizing the closed meeting and shall state the subject to be discussed with reasonable specificity.

The minutes of the next open meeting shall contain information about the closed meeting, including the date, time, place, and subject matter of the closed meeting, the names of the Regents present at the closed meeting, the names of the absent Regents, and a statement that the matters discussed in the closed meeting were limited only to those specified in the notice of the closed meeting.

Action 

Any final action taken as a result of discussions in a closed meeting shall be made by a vote of the Board of Regents at an open public meeting, with the exceptions allowed under § 10-15-1(H).

8. Agendas

A copy of the agenda for each regular and special meeting of the Board of Regents will be available at least seventy-two (72) hours prior to the meeting (and the notice of the meeting shall so state) and will be placed on the regents.unm.edu website. Except for emergency matters, the Board shall take action only on items appearing on the agenda.

9. Public Input at Meetings 

An opportunity for public input regarding agenda items shall be provided at each regular meeting during Board consideration of the agenda item in question. The Board President shall determine the length of time to be allowed for public input for each agenda item, the sequence in which individuals may address the Board, and the length of time that will be allowed for each person to address the Board. The Board President may request that a group designate a spokesperson.

10. Minutes

The Board of Regents shall approve and keep written minutes of all its meetings. The minutes shall include, at a minimum: (1) the date, time, and place of the meeting; (2) the names of Regents in attendance and those absent; (3) a statement of what proposals were considered; and (4) a record of any decisions made by the Board and how each Regent voted.

Draft minutes shall be prepared within ten (10) working days after the meeting and must be available for public inspection. The draft minutes must clearly indicate that they are not the official minutes and are subject to approval by the Board.

Draft minutes shall be approved, amended, or disapproved at the next regular meeting where a quorum is present. Minutes shall not become official until approved by the Board of Regents. Official minutes are subject to public inspection.

No minutes need to be kept during closed sessions, but information about the closed session must be recorded as specified in the "Closed Meetings" section of this resolution.

Recordings of Board of Regents' meetings shall be kept for, at minimum, three (3) years.

11. References

• NMSA 1978, § 10-15-1 et seq. (“Open Meetings Act”)
• NMSA 1978, § 21-7-5 (“Annual Organization Meeting of Board; Election of Officers; Bond of Secretary-Treasurer; Conditions”)