Senate Bill 1187 Reverses Certain Recent Changes to the Brown Act
October 23, 2026
Number 29
On September 18, 2026, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 1187, an urgency statute that immediately removed several of the translation requirements imposed by SB 707 at the start of 2026, while retaining SB 707’s core remote-participation and public access requirements for certain “eligible legislative bodies.”
Background: What SB 707 Did
As discussed in our 2025 Client News Brief Number 59, SB 707 made extensive changes to the Ralph M. Brown Act (Brown Act), including adding Government Code section 54953.4. Beginning July 1, 2026, Government Code section 54953.4 imposed additional public-access requirements on certain “eligible legislative bodies,” which generally includes any city council or county board of supervisors for a city or county with a population of 30,000 or more, any city council of a city located within a county with a population of 600,000 or more, or any board of directors of a large special district with an internet website satisfying certain conditions.
Among other things, the newly added Government Code section 54953.4 requires eligible legislative bodies to provide the public with an opportunity to participate in open meetings remotely through a two-way telephone service or two-way audiovisual platform. It also requires eligible legislative bodies to adopt a policy addressing disruptions to telephone or internet service and, if a disruption prevented remote public access, to recess the meeting for at least one hour while making a good-faith effort to restore service. Critically, section 54953.4 also added several new requirements concerning agenda translations, public assistance, website content and administration, and public request systems.
What SB 1187 Does
SB 1187 retains the core remote-participation and public access requirements established by SB 707, while removing the agenda translation requirements and public assistance and website administration requirements. More specifically, “eligible legislative bodies” are no longer required to:
SB 1187 affects only local agencies with an “eligible legislative body” under Government Code section 54953.4. Agencies that do not meet that definition are not affected and need not change their Brown Act procedures. Notably, Local Educational Agencies, such as school districts, community college districts, and county offices of education, do not meet that definition and are not affected by this change. Agencies with “eligible legislative bodies” must continue to comply with the remote-participation, service disruption, and public outreach provisions, but are no longer required to provide translations, interpretation assistance, and related administrative services previously required by SB 707. It is important to note that, although certain requirements were removed from the Brown Act, agencies must continue to comply with accessibility requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Of course, SB 1187 does not prohibit an agency from continuing translation, interpretation, or other enhanced public-access services.
If you have any questions about SB 1187, or the Brown Act in general, please contact the authors of this Client News Brief or an attorney at one of our nine offices located statewide. You can also subscribe to our podcast, follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn, or download our mobile app.
Number 29
On September 18, 2026, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 1187, an urgency statute that immediately removed several of the translation requirements imposed by SB 707 at the start of 2026, while retaining SB 707’s core remote-participation and public access requirements for certain “eligible legislative bodies.”
Background: What SB 707 Did
As discussed in our 2025 Client News Brief Number 59, SB 707 made extensive changes to the Ralph M. Brown Act (Brown Act), including adding Government Code section 54953.4. Beginning July 1, 2026, Government Code section 54953.4 imposed additional public-access requirements on certain “eligible legislative bodies,” which generally includes any city council or county board of supervisors for a city or county with a population of 30,000 or more, any city council of a city located within a county with a population of 600,000 or more, or any board of directors of a large special district with an internet website satisfying certain conditions.
Among other things, the newly added Government Code section 54953.4 requires eligible legislative bodies to provide the public with an opportunity to participate in open meetings remotely through a two-way telephone service or two-way audiovisual platform. It also requires eligible legislative bodies to adopt a policy addressing disruptions to telephone or internet service and, if a disruption prevented remote public access, to recess the meeting for at least one hour while making a good-faith effort to restore service. Critically, section 54953.4 also added several new requirements concerning agenda translations, public assistance, website content and administration, and public request systems.
What SB 1187 Does
SB 1187 retains the core remote-participation and public access requirements established by SB 707, while removing the agenda translation requirements and public assistance and website administration requirements. More specifically, “eligible legislative bodies” are no longer required to:
- Assist members of the public who wish to translate a public meeting or receive interpretation provided by another member of the public;
- Maintain an electronic system for accepting and fulfilling requests for meeting agendas and documents;
- Create and maintain an accessible internet webpage dedicated to providing information regarding public meetings;
- Translate meeting agendas or the dedicated public-meetings webpage into specified “applicable languages;” or
- Provide a location for members of the public to post additional agenda translations.
SB 1187 affects only local agencies with an “eligible legislative body” under Government Code section 54953.4. Agencies that do not meet that definition are not affected and need not change their Brown Act procedures. Notably, Local Educational Agencies, such as school districts, community college districts, and county offices of education, do not meet that definition and are not affected by this change. Agencies with “eligible legislative bodies” must continue to comply with the remote-participation, service disruption, and public outreach provisions, but are no longer required to provide translations, interpretation assistance, and related administrative services previously required by SB 707. It is important to note that, although certain requirements were removed from the Brown Act, agencies must continue to comply with accessibility requirements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Of course, SB 1187 does not prohibit an agency from continuing translation, interpretation, or other enhanced public-access services.
If you have any questions about SB 1187, or the Brown Act in general, please contact the authors of this Client News Brief or an attorney at one of our nine offices located statewide. You can also subscribe to our podcast, follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn, or download our mobile app.
Disclaimer: As the information contained herein is necessarily general, its application to a particular set of facts and circumstances may vary. For this reason, this News Brief does not constitute legal advice. We recommend that you consult with your counsel prior to acting on the information contained herein.
