FILE - In this Feb. 10, 2021, file photo, House speaker Del. Eileen Filler-Corn, D-Fairfax, gavels in the session to an empty Virginia House of Delegates chamber after a Zoom Legislative session at the Capitol in Richmond, Va. A year after COVID-19 triggered government shutdowns and crowd limitations, more public bodies than ever are livestreaming their meetings for anyone to watch from a computer, television or smartphone.
“In a way, this is kind of helping move us toward a country where citizens can be more involved in their government through Zoom, and that’s a good thing,” said David Cuillier, an associate journalism professor at the University of Arizona who is president of the National Freedom of Information Coalition.All 50 state legislatures already provided video or audio of their floor sessions before the pandemic.
The Republican-led Missouri Senate does not allow remote testimony. The GOP-led House adopted a rule this year leaving the decision to each committee. But approval must be granted at least one committee hearing in advance, which could be a full week based on typical schedules. So far, only a few of the four dozen House committees have used the option.
Republican Rep. John Kavanagh, chairman of the House Government and Elections Committee, initially refused to let the public testify remotely at his hearings because he feared getting overloaded with witnesses from other states. He later allowed it after he saw that virtual testimony worked fine in other committees.
“If tomorrow COVID were cured, would we still continue with virtual hearings? Well, probably, yeah,” said Bill Raftery, a senior analyst at the National Center for State Courts.
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