Ouray County Plaindealer: This pandemic has challenged all of us to varying degrees. Coping with stay-at-home orders, restricted business operations, economic hardship and isolation are just a few of the difficulties we’ve all faced.

Governments and public agencies, in particular, have grappled with ever-changing situations. They have needed to make decisions quickly in the interest of public health, trying to ensure safety with proper distance while hosting properly noticed public meetings virtually.

In some ways, taking meetings online and allowing people to participate virtually has allowed for more participation than ever before. If you can call into a meeting and listen to government business while making dinner, driving or folding laundry, it’s more convenient. But at the same time, public participation depends on how these meetings are conducted.

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