Santa Monica residents can now call in or join City Council meetings by video and comment in real time, under changes the city announced Monday, Aug. 3, to comply with California's new open-meetings law.

Senate Bill 707, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October 2025 and effective for cities Santa Monica's size since July 1, requires two-way remote participation at all open council sessions. The city's press release outlined three main changes:

Hybrid meetings by phone or Zoom. Residents can now attend via a two-way telephonic service or audiovisual platform. Those who want to speak by phone must register at santamonica.gov/public-comment by 5 p.m. the day before a meeting. Zoom participants can join at the start of the session and call in closer to when their item is heard.

Spanish-language instructions. The council meeting agendas webpage now includes participation instructions in Spanish. Residents who need Spanish-language assistance can also call the City Clerk's Office at (310) 458-8211 and ask for Esterlina Lugo.

Space for personal interpreters. During meetings, the city will reserve space for members of the public who bring their own interpreters or devices.

The city said it will also conduct outreach to non-English-speaking communities through local partnerships, though it did not specify which organizations or a timeline.

SB 707, authored by state Sen. María Elena Durazo, requires cities with populations over 30,000 to offer hybrid meetings and to translate agendas and instructions into any language spoken by 20 percent or more of the local limited-English-proficient population, according to a legal analysis by Lozano Smith.

The changes build on a series of expansions since the pandemic, as reported by the Santa Monica Lookout. The council first allowed telephone comments during the COVID-19 emergency in March 2020. It voted to hold hybrid meetings in June 2022, then formally codified telephone comment in its Rules of Procedure in May 2025.

That May 2025 update also introduced the current time limits: speakers get up to 4 minutes on a single agenda item, 2 minutes per item when addressing multiple items, and a 6-minute cap per meeting. If more than 25 speakers register for a public input section, time drops to 1 minute each, except during public hearings.

City officials said in the announcement that Santa Monica remains committed to ensuring residents have meaningful opportunities to participate in local government decision-making. No named official or council member commented specifically on the SB 707 rollout; the media contact listed is Lauren Howland, the city's communications and public information manager.

The next regular City Council meeting is Tuesday, Aug. 11. The Aug. 25 meeting has been canceled for summer recess. Written public comment can be emailed to [email protected] by noon on meeting day to be distributed to the council and posted online.