WHEREAS, the Ohio Attorney General further asserted in the March 13 letter the following:

“In this limited circumstance, where the Governor has declared a state of emergency and the Director of the Ohio Department of Health is limiting gatherings so as to prevent the spread of COVID-19, but the business of government must continue, it is reasonable to read the OMA’s “in person” requirement as permitting a member of a public body to appear at a public meeting via teleconference. This interpretation gives effect to both R.C. 121.22 and R.C. 3701.13. It is also consistent with the United States Centers for Disease Control’s recent guidance, issued in response to the national COVID-19 epidemic, to use videoconferencing for meetings when possible;” and

WHEREAS, as an exercise of local home rule authority, Council has previously adopted legislation consistent with this guidance as to the OMA’s “in person” requirement, and codified the same at Section 111.06 of the Oakwood Administrative Code; and

WHEREAS, as to the issue of public access, the March 13, 2020 letter from the Ohio Attorney General also indicated the following:

“Further, even in this time of a public health crisis, public access to the business of Ohio’s public bodies is still vital. It is also still required by the OMA. Although the OMA does not specifically dictate how a meeting is made ‘open’ to the public, in the interest of complying with both Dr. Acton’s Order and the OMA a meeting could be made ‘open’ to the public by live-streaming it through the internet or television;” and

WHEREAS, the city of Oakwood has the technology whereby any and/or all Council members can take part in a meeting electronically, with all members of Council and others that are signed into the meeting able to be heard, and also has the capability of broadcasting the same live to the public over television and the internet (a “Remote Meeting”); and

WHEREAS, Council of the city of Oakwood believes that it is in the best interest of the citizens of Oakwood, to make available and utilize Remote Meetings to transact necessary business of the city during the course of the state of emergency, and to make available and utilize other emergency procedures to transact necessary business of the city during the course of the state of emergency;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF OAKWOOD, MONTGOMERY COUNTY, OHIO, THAT:

SECTION I.

Council of the city of Oakwood hereby declares that a state of emergency exists in the city and hereby invokes and declares those portions of the Ohio Revised Code which are applicable to the emergency and have caused the issuance of this declaration to be in full force and effect in the city for the exercise of all necessary emergency authority for protection of the lives and property of the people of Oakwood and the continuation of local government with a minimum of interruption.

SECTION II.

Reference is hereby made to all appropriate laws, charter provisions, statutes, ordinances and resolutions, and particularly to the Emergency Management provisions contained in Section 5502 of the Ohio Revised Code and to the Codified Ordinances of the city of Oakwood, Ohio.

SECTION III.

All public offices and employees of the city of Oakwood are hereby directed to exercise the utmost diligence in the discharge of duties required of them for the duration of the emergency and in execution of emergency laws, regulations, and directives – federal, state and local.

SECTION IV.

All citizens are called upon and directed to comply with necessary emergency measures, to cooperate with public officials and in executing emergency operational plans, and to obey and comply with the lawful direction of properly identified officers.