§ 1151.6 Board meetings. ( a ) *Number.* The Chair shall schedule four meetings of the Board each year starting January 2023, one of which may be a Board sponsored public event outside the Washington, DC area.
( b ) *Timing.* Regular meetings of the Board shall ordinarily be held in January, April, July, and October of each calendar year. The Chair may reschedule a regular meeting of the Board to another date during the month preceding or following the month in which the regularly scheduled meeting was to occur.
( c ) *Manner of conducting meetings.* Two regular Board meetings will be in person, but allow for participation by the Board, liaisons, and members of the public remotely, and two meetings may be entirely remote. The Board shall comply with all legal requirements concerning the manner of conducting meetings, including the requirement to provide reasonable accommodations for Board members, employees, members of the public, and other participants.
( d ) *Agenda.* The Chair establishes the agenda for the meetings, in consultation with the Executive Director as necessary and appropriate. Members or committees may forward submissions for agenda items to the Chair and/or to the Executive Director. Except for items concerning the adoption, amendment, or rescission of the bylaws in this part, an item may be placed before the Board for consideration without the approval of the Chair upon a two-thirds vote of the members present at a Board meeting and any proxies to suspend the rules of order. Items concerning the adoption, amendment, or rescission of the bylaws in this part may be placed on a future Board agenda without the approval of the Chair upon a vote of two-thirds of the membership of the Board (as fixed by statute).
( e ) *Notice.* ( 1 ) The Chair shall provide a schedule in writing of Board meetings for the upcoming year at least thirty (30) days prior to the January Board meeting and shall provide to each Board member the agenda and supporting materials for each meeting at least ten (10) work days prior to each meeting. The ten (10) days notice requirement may be waived upon a two-thirds vote by the members present at the Board meeting and any proxies to suspend the rules of order.
( 2 ) The public shall receive notice of the dates of meetings for the upcoming year at least thirty (30) days prior to the January Board meeting. Notice may be by publication of the schedule of meetings on the agency's website and/or through any other means by which interested members of the public are likely to access it. The notice shall include a statement that the Board will provide reasonable accommodations, absent an undue burden, that will enable members of the public to participate in meetings.
( f ) *Cancellation.* The Chair may cancel a regular meeting of the Board by giving written notice of the cancellation at least ten (10) work days prior to the meeting where practical. If the canceled meeting is a public meeting, members of the public will be given notice of its cancelation at the same time as Board members.
( g ) *Special meetings.* The Chair may call special meetings of the Board to deal with important matters arising between regular meetings which require action by the Board prior to the next regular meeting. Voting and discussion shall be limited to the subject matter which necessitated the call of the special meeting. All Board members shall receive reasonable advance notice of the time, place, and purpose of the special meeting. If the special meeting is also a public meeting, members of the public shall be given notice of its occurrence at the same time as Board members, and such notice shall indicate that the Board will provide reasonable accommodations for members of the public to participate in the meeting, absent undue burden.
( h ) *Record.* The Executive Director shall maintain a permanent record of the minutes of all meetings and attendance. The Board shall approve the final minutes after all corrections and additions have been incorporated.
( i ) *Rules for Board meetings.* Meetings of the Board shall be held in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order, except as otherwise prescribed in the bylaws in this part.
( j ) *Quorum.* ( 1 ) A quorum shall be the majority of the membership of the Board (as fixed by statute). A majority of the members required for a quorum shall be public members.
( 2 ) Proxies shall not be counted for purposes of establishing a quorum.
( 3 ) If a quorum is not present, a meeting shall be held only for the purpose of discussion and no vote may be taken.
( k ) *Voting.* ( 1 ) Only Board members may vote.
( 2 ) Except as otherwise prescribed in the bylaws in this part, a majority vote of the members present and any proxies is necessary for action by the Board.
( 3 ) The presiding officer shall have the same right to vote as any other member.
( 4 ) Any member may give his or her directed or undirected proxy to any other Board member present at the meeting. Proxies shall be given in writing and submitted to the Chair prior to or at the meeting. A directed proxy shall be voided as to a specific issue if the question on which the vote is eventually taken differs from the question to which the proxy is directed.
( 5 ) The Board may act on items of business between meetings by notational voting. At the request of the Chair, the Executive Director shall send a written ballot (which may be in the form of electronic mail) to each Board member describing each item submitted for notational voting. If any Board member requests discussion on an item, the ballots shall not be counted and the Chair shall place the item on the next Board meeting agenda for discussion and voting. Notational votes shall ordinarily occur over a period of five (5) business days, but may be extended, at the Chair's discretion, if, at the conclusion of the voting period, an insufficient number of votes have been cast to approve or disapprove an action.
( l ) *Telecommunications.* A member of the Board shall be considered present at a meeting when he or she participates in person or by conference telephone or similar communication equipment that enables all persons participating in the meeting to communicate with each other.
[87 FR 69170, Nov. 18, 2022]