Open Meeting Law

Massachusetts Open Meeting Laws apply to governmental entities at the state, county and local levels. In general these laws require that meetings of such entities be open to the public, that notice of such meetings be publicly posted and that accurate records of the meeting be maintained and also available to the public.

The District Attorney is responsible for enforcing the Open Meeting Law in the county, cities, and towns within his or her District. However, since Middlesex County as a governmental entity was abolished on July 11, 1997, G. L. c. 34B, § 1, the Middlesex District Attorney is now responsible for enforcing the Open Meeting Law at the city and town levels only.

The purpose of these revised Guidelines is to explain the requirements of the Law and the procedures the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office has adopted to handle both complaints alleging violations and requests for advice about the Law. The Open Meeting Law itself has been amended several times and there have been a number of appellate court decisions since the District Attorney’s previous Open Meeting Law Guidelines were distributed in 1984, 1987, 1989, 1993 2001 and 2003. We hope that these revised Guidelines will continue to give officials in the towns and cities of Middlesex County a tool to assist them in complying with the Open Meeting Law. We also hope that they will offer citizens a guide to a better understanding of the responsibilities of their elected and appointed officials, and of their rights and the means of enforcing those rights under the Law. Click Here to Download the Open Meeting Law Guidelines.