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7 9 <br /> of a majority of the board to discuss public business.The rules <br /> also apply to informal work sessions or committee meetings <br /> where public business is discussed but no official action is <br /> taken. <br /> H. Open Meetings <br /> Rule 2. Meetings to be Open. <br /> (a) It is the public policy of North Carolina and of Orange County <br /> that the hearings, deliberations, and actions of this board and its <br /> committees be conducted openly. <br /> (b) Except as otherwise provided in these rules and in accordance <br /> with applicable law, each official meeting of the Orange County <br /> Board of Commissioners shall be open to the public and any <br /> person is entitled to attend such meeting. <br /> Comment:See G.S.143-318.10(a). <br /> (c) For the purposes of the provisions of these rules concerning <br /> open meetings, an official meeting of the board is defined as any <br /> gathering together at any time or place or the simultaneous <br /> communication by conference telephone or other electronic means <br /> of a majority of board members for the purpose of conducting <br /> hearings, participating in deliberations, or voting upon or <br /> otherwise transacting public business within the jurisdiction, real <br /> or apparent, of the board. <br /> Comment: See G.S. 143-318.10(d). The Open Meetings Law <br /> provides that a social meeting or other informal assembly or <br /> gathering together of the members of the board does not <br /> constitute an official meeting unless it is "called or held to <br /> evade the spirit and purposes" of the laws requiring meetings <br /> to be open. <br /> Comment: See G.S. 143-318.13(a) specifically authorizing <br /> electronic meetings of public bodies. <br /> Rule 3. Closed Sessions. <br /> (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of Rule 2, the board may hold <br /> a closed session in compliance with G.S. 143-318.11. It is the <br /> policy of the state of North Carolina that closed sessions shall be <br />