# District of Columbia B26-0199: Open Meetings Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2025

District of Columbia B26-0199, Open Meetings Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2025, is a Council Period 26 (2025-2026) House bill sponsored by Phil Mendelson (Democratic); status signed, last action 2025-04-11 (Act A26-0041 Published in DC Register Vol 72 and Page 004070, Expires on Jul 06, 2025) (as of 2026-11-04).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0199-26
- As of: 2026-11-04
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: District of Columbia B26-0199
- State: District of Columbia
- Session: Council Period 26 (2025-2026)
- Title: Open Meetings Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2025
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2025-03-28
- Last action: 2025-04-11, Act A26-0041 Published in DC Register Vol 72 and Page 004070, Expires on Jul 06, 2025
- Sponsor: Phil Mendelson (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 3 (26 yes, 10 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 3

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Closed sessions for safety threats: mixed, low. Public bodies may meet in private to discuss specific ways to protect against terrorist acts or major public health and safety dangers. They can receive briefings from staff, counsel, law enforcement, or emergency officials when sharing details could endanger people or the body. These sessions can…
- New access steps, looser notice rules: mixed, low. Public bodies must take reasonable steps so the public can watch or hear meetings as they happen. If live access is not technologically possible, they must provide it as soon as reasonably practicable. Bodies must make reasonable arrangements to honor the public’s right to attend. Notice is relaxed…
- What counts as a public meeting: mixed, low. The law clarifies that a meeting includes any gathering of a quorum, including hearings and roundtables, in person or online. Chance or social events and press conferences are not meetings, if not used to dodge the law. For the Council, meetings are regular or additional legislative meetings and co…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Phil Mendelson (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2025-04-01 | House | Other | fail | 4 | 8 |   |
| 2025-04-01 | House | Other | pass | 12 | 0 |   |
| 2025-04-01 | House | Final Reading | pass | 10 | 2 |   |

## Actions (7)

- 2025-04-11: Act A26-0041 Published in DC Register Vol 72 and Page 004070, Expires on Jul 06, 2025 (House)
- 2025-04-08: Returned from Mayor (House)
- 2025-04-07: Signed by the Mayor and Enacted with Act Number A26-0041, Expires on Jul 06, 2025 (House)
- 2025-04-03: Transmitted to Mayor, Response Due on Apr 18, 2025 (House)
- 2025-04-01: Legislative Meeting (House)
- 2025-04-01: Retained by the Council (House)
- 2025-03-28: B26-0199 Introduced by Chairman Mendelson at Office of the Secretary (House)

## Bill text

- Amendment, 2025-04-01: [PDF](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Amendment/B26-0199-Amendment1.pdf?Id=209422), [PDF](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Amendment/B26-0199-Amendment2.pdf?Id=209423)
- Enrollment, 2025-04-01: [PDF](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Enrollment/B26-0199-Enrollment3.pdf?Id=209500)
- Introduced, 2025-03-28: [PDF](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Introduction/B26-0199-Introduction.pdf?Id=209068)

## Related bills

- B26-0047: Funeral Directors Licensing Reform Amendment Act of 2025 (signed)
- B26-0785: Peer-to-Peer Car Sharing Rental Vehicle Sales Tax Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2026 (signed)
- B26-0663: Fiscal Year 2026 Revised Local Budget Temporary Act of 2026 (signed)
- B26-0181: Short-Term Disability Insurance Benefit Protection Clarification Amendment Act of 2025 (signed)
- B26-0735: Special Education for Young Adults in the Custody of the Department of Corrections Temporary Amendment Act of 2026 (signed)
- B26-0760: Medical Cannabis Licensing and Unlicensed Establishment Enforcement Clarification Temporary Amendment Act of 2026 (signed)

## Sources
- [Amendment (PDF)](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Amendment/B26-0199-Amendment1.pdf?Id=209422)
- [Amendment (PDF)](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Amendment/B26-0199-Amendment2.pdf?Id=209423)
- [Enrollment (PDF)](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Meeting1/Enrollment/B26-0199-Enrollment3.pdf?Id=209500)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lims.dccouncil.gov/downloads/LIMS/57461/Introduction/B26-0199-Introduction.pdf?Id=209068)

## Related
- [B26-0047: Funeral Directors Licensing Reform Amendment Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0047-26)
- [B26-0785: Peer-to-Peer Car Sharing Rental Vehicle Sales Tax Clarification Emergency Amend…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0785-26)
- [B26-0663: Fiscal Year 2026 Revised Local Budget Temporary Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0663-26)
- [B26-0181: Short-Term Disability Insurance Benefit Protection Clarification Amendment Act…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0181-26)
- [B26-0735: Special Education for Young Adults in the Custody of the Department of Correcti…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0735-26)
- [B26-0760: Medical Cannabis Licensing and Unlicensed Establishment Enforcement Clarificati…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0760-26)
- [District of Columbia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/district-of-columbia/bills)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/DC-B26-0199-26 (as of 2026-11-04).