Virtual Council Meetings - Speaker view vs. Gallery view

[Guest Jackie]

During the pandemic, our local city council meetings have, of course, switched to virtual meetings.  Their first meeting was in "Gallery" view so the public could see ALL of the elected officials at the same time - just like IRL.  However, their next meetings have now been set to "Speaker Only" view and now the public can only see the active speaker.  Does Roberts Rules of Order have something to say about this?  Although there likely isn't anything nefarious happening, couldn't it be a possibility that some of the members are influencing each other off-camera? I don't think it's fair to the public to have a limited view of what's happening with the electeds during virtual council meetings. Appreciate your thoughts and insights!

[George Mervosh]

32 minutes ago, Guest Jackie said:

Does Roberts Rules of Order have something to say about this?  

No, RONR has nothing to say about the rights of the public in regards to this matter.  If you have concerns contact the council's attorney.

[Josh Martin]

4 hours ago, Guest Jackie said:

Does Roberts Rules of Order have something to say about this?

RONR does note that if meetings are to be held be videoconference, all members must be able to see each other at the same time (unless, of course, the organization's rules provide otherwise). RONR does not grant the public a right to see anything or to attend the meetings at all, so that question has more to do with interpretation of applicable law - in particular, the "open meeting law" or "sunshine law" in your state.

"Various provisions for electronic meetings are possible, so that more than the minimum standard of an audioconference may be required. Thus, if the bylaws provide for meeting by videoconference (but not merely by "teleconference" or "audioconference"), the meeting must be conducted by a technology that allows all participating members to see each other, as well as to hear each other, at the same time. Provision may also be made for the use of additional collaborative technology to aid in the conduct of a meeting." (RONR, 11th ed., pg. 98)

4 hours ago, Guest Jackie said:

Although there likely isn't anything nefarious happening, couldn't it be a possibility that some of the members are influencing each other off-camera?

That certainly is a possibility, but even if they were influencing each other off-camera, this would violate no rule in RONR. This seems like a legal issue, not a parliamentary one.

Edited May 7, 2020 at 09:29 PM by Josh Martin

[Joshua Katz]

What RONR says about this is that, in order to hold electronic meetings, you need to have authorized it in your bylaws, and you should adopt rules explaining how it works. It's unlikely those rules get into Zoom features like speaker view vs. gallery rule, but they could be amended to address the matter.