Well, I received a comment to yesterday's post providing a suggestion for a discussion topic. If I am reading it right, there are a few subtopics that need to be addressed, even perhaps an additional point here or there. But good discussion points nonetheless. It is doubtful I can, indeed should, deal with it all in one post, so I think I will take a stab at it over the course of several days.
From the "Code of Fairhaven" the comment to yesterday's post in part asked/stated: "I would like to know the best approach to compel a community’s fragmented government to comply with some of the spirit of the new open meeting law as well as local policy?"
The spirit of the law. Always a problematic area. Just what is it? I would like to think there would be universal agreement the spirit, the intent if you will, is to foster open and transparent governmental action.
The comment went on to add: "I see a policy created by Selectmen in which meeting agendas and minutes are to be posted online. Yet, no implementation to ensure it happens. Boards, committees, and departments slowly start to revert back to their old ways. Agendas are posted after the fact for instance. Elected officers or appointed members have little authority on day to day work."
Chain of Command is of course part of the problem. There was a policy statement issued by the Board of Selectmen relative to requiring notices/agendas and minutes being submitted to the selectmen's office in .pdf format so the same can be posted on the town web site.
The ability and willingness to enforce this policy comes into issue as to why it may not be complied with.
The failure to do so by the way is not a violation of the actual open meeting law. So long as a notice of meeting is filed with the Town Clerk sufficiently in advance of a meeting to allow the notice to be posted on the bulletin board outside Town Hall at least 48 hrs. in advance of a meeting, the legal requirements have been met.
Note: the 48 hrs. excludes Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays. Effectively, posting for a Monday Meeting must happen on a Thursday.
Another important note is the fact that a formal agenda is not required to be posted. The requirement under the law is a notice of meeting in a legible and easily understood format, containing time, date and place of the meeting, along with a list of topics the chair reasonably anticipates at the time the notice is filed will be discussed. The list of topics must be sufficiently specific to inform the public of the issues to be discussed at the meeting.
So after that bit of information, how do we get stuff posted to the web site, in addition to the bulletin board outside of Town Hall?
In theory, if everyone complies with the policy of the selectmen, and sends the notice to them, than it should be easy. In practice, that may not happen. Say someone provides a notice at 4:20 P.M. to the Town Clerk on a Thursday for a Monday evening meeting. Town Hall closes at 4:30 P.M. The e-mail with the .pdf is sent contemporaneously with the filing of the notice. Someone forgets or neglects to send it.
The selectmen's office has no way of knowing the notice has been filed. I am not 100% sure of the procedure, in place right now as to whether the clerk does provide a copy of the notice to the selectmen. But say that is in place, in this example odds are the copy would not be received until Friday morning, or perhaps at the close of business on Thursday the earliest. It is unlikely the same will be posted to the web site within the 48 hrs. at that point.
Quite frankly, the posting of the notice on the bulletin board is the priority. The town web site posting is also desirable and should be priority number 2, but may for some very valid reasons not occur within at 48 hrs. in advance. The time the actual notice is filed will affect in some cases the ability to post the notice within the appropriate time frame.
There should be no excuse however for a notice to be posted on line after the fact. I must add I have no actual knowledge of this happening.
Another method to insure notice be posted to the website would involve personnel and money. There very well could be a source of money other than the general fund for that. You actual designate an employee to physically visit the Town Clerk's office once, perhaps twice a day,ask for a copy of all notice filed, and then have that employee scan or do whatever is needed to post the notice. This will not guaranty everything happens at least 48 hrs. ahead though.
Some argue that the 48 hrs. is too short a time frame. I tend to agree. I often think another day might be appropriate.
But I have somewhat digressed. The issue is to make sure there is compliance. I believe you could craft some type of by-law to require on-line posting but it would have to be reasonable enough to allow a lesser time frame to deal with the last minute postings. Enforcement becomes another matter, however.
I will be honest and state I am not sure how one handles that. Any thoughts?
I do think the whole issue is more a procedural problem rather than willful disregard. I think we need to seriously look at the whole protocol, come up with a solution, which would involve dedicating personnel and money and then implement it. I believe it is something that should happen.
The biggest problem is that so long as the letter of the law is carried out, you will unfortunately have issues over the "spirit" concept. Despite what everyone may think, policy issued by the selectmen have in many respect little or no teeth. Part of that is due to lack of follow through as n"The Code" correctly notes in his comments. A bigger part of that is there are literally no teeth.
The selectmen can dictate and enforce only where authorized under the law. The selectmen can seek enforcement only when there is a legal violation. One can assign duties to any entity or position one may wish, however unless the same is directly answerable to you, if the duties go ignored, there is nothing you can do about it.
A big problem with a linear structured government.
This topic deserves more attention and hopefully will get it. For now I am out of time. Be Safe.
A little knowledge provided in the form of a group meeting(with food) and money already in budgets and it’s done! Or one on one training for an hour for the challenged. Microsoft and others have already provided the way and you already paid for that. Much easier than scanning, copying, putting on your jackets and boots and stapling it’s a$$ to a piece of plywood few ever look at. The agendas, minutes and now videos viewed monthly online, I bet, are in the hundreds, probably by me alone! Views on a damp piece of wood, in the rain, snow and sleet; only in case of extreme emergency! The state law is the MINIMUM standard.
ReplyDeleteTown meeting members have paid for every technology asked of it. Laptops, servers, mobile phones, PV solar, digesters, wireless master boxes, remote control of signal lights, web based security cameras, network printers, wireless water meters, thermal scanners, GPS, GIS, twin 300hp, night vision?, ROV? and cotton suits. On and on and on. It’s time to give something back to the thousands of voters with little voice. Every employee ever hired professes to understand and use computer software. Once hired immediately profess to be lacking about computer software. I want a test…kidding?
The town website meeting calendar is the exact fit. The calendar template is distributed from one computer. Departments need to be given access rights to that one collaboration document. They place their own data into it at will. It gets posted online daily by one admin user, one click! Agendas have items weeks in advance. It is a living, breathing document. No need to wait for every last minute item or letter. Continuous updating is fast and easy.
Not a big deal at all in private business. But you have to see the need for it in the first place. Why do we need to bring taxpayers and property holders eyes into the town’s business at all? Mind your own business I hear. Hence my original question to you. If a policy at the top has indeed been declared… We can’t keep asking the employees if they can or want do it. We know their answers already.
There is much in government that is made into a big deal, that wouldn't even be considered an issue in private business. That is because in private business there is a hierarchy, a chain of command. When not followed, there are ramifications. But I don;t want to get into that debate.
ReplyDeleteI agree the notices need to be more timely dealt with. I also agree it wouldn't take a lot of effort to do a session or two to go over the process.
No disrespect, but I don't go along with giving some 40 odd boards, committees and departments all administrators' rights or editorial access over any one program. Although I think the town should be able to allow each access to their individual page.
Bottom line I do agree there needs to be more done on the notice end.