Ohio Code 4517.35 – Motor vehicle dealers board electronic meetings
(A) Members of the motor vehicle dealers board may hold and attend meetings and may conduct and attend hearings by means of teleconference, video conference, or any other similar electronic technology, and all of the following apply:
Terms Used In Ohio Code 4517.35
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Internet: means the international computer network of both federal and nonfederal interoperable packet switched data networks, including the graphical subnetwork known as the world wide web. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Person: includes an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, and association. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
- Rule: includes regulation. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
(1) Any decision, resolution, rule, or formal action of any kind has the same effect as if it occurred during an open meeting or hearing of the board in which members are present in person.
(2) Notwithstanding division (C) of section 121.22 of the Revised Code, members of the board who attend meetings or hearings by means of teleconference, video conference, or any other similar electronic technology, shall be considered present as if in person at the meeting or hearing, shall be permitted to vote, and shall be counted for purposes of determining whether a quorum is present at the meeting or hearing.
(3) The board shall provide notification of meetings and hearings held under this section to the public, to the media that have requested notification of a meeting, and to the parties required to be notified of a hearing, at least twenty-four hours in advance of the meeting or hearing by reasonable methods by which any person may determine the time, location, and the manner by which the meeting or hearing will be conducted, except in the event of an emergency requiring immediate official action. In the event of an emergency, the board shall immediately notify the news media that have requested notification or the parties required to be notified of a hearing of the time, place, and purpose of the meeting or hearing.
(4) The board shall provide the public access to a meeting held under this section, and to any hearing held under this section that the public would otherwise be entitled to attend, commensurate with the method in which the meeting or hearing is being conducted, including examples such as livestreaming by means of the internet, local radio, television, cable, or public access channels, call in information for a teleconference, or by means of any other similar electronic technology. The board shall ensure that the public can observe, when applicable, and hear the discussions and deliberations of all the members of the board, whether the member is participating in person or electronically.
(5) Individuals subject to board business, including licensees, representatives, witnesses, or subject matter experts must attend the meeting in person.
(B) When members of the motor vehicle dealers board conduct a hearing by means of teleconference, video conference, or any other similar electronic technology, the board shall establish a means, through the use of electronic equipment that is widely available to the general public, to converse with witnesses and to receive documentary testimony and physical evidence.
(C) The authority granted in this section applies notwithstanding any conflicting provision of the Revised Code. Nothing in this section shall be construed to negate any provision of section 121.22 of the Revised Code, Chapter 119 of the Revised Code, or other section of the Revised Code, that is not in conflict with this section.
Last updated September 26, 2023 at 5:45 PM