TO: LINDA REICH, CITY MANAGER
FROM: NATALIE GONZAGA, CITY CLERK
SUBJECT
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Senate Bill 707 Updates and Adoption of a Disruption of Service during a City Council Meeting Policy.
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RECOMMENDATION
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Receive an update related to significant updates to the Ralph M. Brown Act by Senate Bill 707 (SB 707) and approve Resolution No. 2026-038 to adopt a Disruption of Telephonic or Internet Service During Public Meetings Policy.
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FISCAL IMPACT
No fiscal impact is associated with the resolution adoption.
CITY OF CHINO MISSION / VISION / VALUES / STRATEGIC ISSUES
The recommendation detailed above further the City’s values and strategic issues that serve as key pillars on which identified priorities, goals, and action plans are built, by fostering:
• Superior Customer Service
• Effective Technology
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BACKGROUND
The Ralph M. Brown Act (Government Code §54950 et seq.) establishes requirements for open meetings of local legislative bodies. SB 707, signed into law by Governor Newsom on October 3, 2025, updates provisions related to teleconferencing, including requirements for remote participation, accessibility, and procedures for addressing disruptions to meeting access for City Council meetings. Some SB 707 provisions went into effect on January 1, 2026, while the most significant changes will become effective on July 1, 2026.
Among other requirements, SB 707 requires the City Council to adopt a disruption of telephonic or internet service policy for meetings of the City Council. This policy must be adopted by July 1, 2026.
ISSUES/ANALYSIS
Under SB 707, "eligible legislative bodies" will be subject to new requirements relating to the conduct of public meetings on July 1, 2026. SB 707 defines "eligible legislative bodies" as a City Council in a city with a population of 30,000 or more or in a county with a population of more than 600,000. The City Council of the City of Chino qualifies as an "eligible legislative body" under this definition and is therefore subject to the following requirements by July 1, 2026. City Commissions do not qualify as an eligible legislative body. The requirements are summarized below.
Mandatory Hybrid Meetings: Under this requirement, the public must be able to participate in-person plus through either a two-way telephonic or audiovisual platform to provide public comment.
Adopt a Disruption Policy: The City Council must adopt a policy that addresses disruptions of telephonic or internet service for meetings on or before July 1, 2026. This policy is attached as Resolution 2026-038.
Translation of Meeting Agendas: The City must translate agendas and instructions on how to participate into any language, other than English, spoken jointly by 20% or more of the total population of the City and 20% of that language who also speak English less than "very well." The City of Chino is required to translate meeting agendas (but not the entire agenda packet) to Spanish.
Implement an Agenda Request System: A system must be in place for electronically accepting and fulfilling requests for agendas and meeting documents.
Public Meeting Information Webpage: The City must have an accessible webpage that is dedicated to information concerning public meetings.
Outreach for Meeting Participation: Eligible legislative bodies must make reasonable efforts to encourage meeting participation from groups that do not traditionally participate, such as outreach to media organizations serving non-English communities or civic engagement organizations. This law gives the eligible legislative body broad discretion to implement these efforts.
Publicly Accessible Space for the Public to Post Translated Agendas: The City must provide a physical location, within reasonable proximity to where the City' s agendas are posted, accessible to the public, for the public to post additional translated agendas.
Support with Meeting Translation: The City must aid any public member who wishes to use a personal interpreter by giving them the space to accommodate the interpreter and extra time.
Below are additional important changes that went into effect on January 1, 2026:
Non-traditional Teleconferencing Expanded: Non-traditional teleconferencing provisions now include proclaimed state of emergency or local emergency and expand the "just cause" provision by folding in the basis of " emergency circumstances," and adding immunocompromised family member and military service obligations as grounds for the need to participate remotely. The "just cause" teleconferencing option requires a quorum of members to be in a physical location open to the public within the legislative body’s jurisdiction.
Remote Participation as ADA Reasonable Accommodation for Disabled Member: A member of the legislative body with a disability may participate remotely as a reasonable accommodation. This member must use audio and video unless the disability requires audio only and disclose the nature of the relationship and presence of any person age 18 and older present in the room at the remote location. This member will still count toward a physical quorum, and neither traditional nor non-traditional teleconferencing requirements apply (e.g., posting at the teleconferencing location).
Social Media Restrictions Sunset Date Removed: The January 1, 2026, sunset date for AB 992's social media restrictions has been removed, and the law will no longer expire. This law prohibits a majority of the members of a legislative body from using social media platforms to discuss official business among themselves, including making posts, commenting and using "emojis." This law also prohibits a member of the legislative body from responding directly to any communication on an internet- based social media platform regarding a matter that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the legislative body that is posted or shared by another member.
City staff is actively finalizing the implementation of SB 707, which establishes new standards for public participation. This work includes finalizing website updates, updating internal procedures, preparing community outreach, and coordinating necessary technology upgrades to ensure full compliance. All required components are being refined so that the City will be fully prepared for the implementation date of July 1, 2026.
It is recommended that the City Council receive this update on SB 707 and approve Resolution No. 2026-038 to adopt a Disruption of Telephonic or Internet Service During Public Meetings Policy.
Attachment - Resolution 2026-038