An expert on open government held court in Seymour Wednesday night, answering any and all questions the public could throw at him.
The workshop — led by state Freedom of Information public information officer Thomas Hennick — was scheduled due to a complaint the Valley Indy filed against the Seymour Police Commission regarding an improper executive (non-public) session they held last year. Background here.
The Valley Indy agreed to withdraw our complaint if the commissioners attended the workshop.
In addition to the five-member police commission, four other people — including a member of the Seymour police department and the city’s finance director — attended the session to learn more about the law.
The Valley Indy participated by peppering Hennick with Freedom of Information issues we encounter every day.
Here are some of the topics that were discussed during the meeting, paraphrased into Q&A form. Click here to read the full Freedom of Information Act.
Q: Do agendas and minutes have to be filed online?
A: Not anymore. The legislature has repealed a rule saying all minutes and agendas must be filed online. But if your agency already does it, Hennick suggests sticking with that policy.
Q: If members of a board show up to another board’s meeting, does it count as a meeting of the first board?
A: No. As long as the attendants aren’t conducting any official business at the other meeting, it doesn’t count as a meeting.
Q: Must we allow public comment under the FOI Act?
A: No. “The FOI act doesn’t give anyone the right to speak at a meeting, only attend,” Hennick said. The board can set guidelines for public comment — such as time limits — without violating the act. The board also can decide to engage in dialogue with the public. “You’ve got to use common sense there,” Hennick said.
Q: When can a board go into executive session?
A: There are five reasons: Discussion of 1) personnel issues, 2) pending litigation or claims, including action the board is considering taking, 3) matters of security, 4) sale, lease or purchase of land, 5) contents of a document that is exempt from disclosure.
Q: Can you discuss a report received in public session in an executive session?
A: No. “If you get a report at a public meeting, there aren’t grounds for executive session,” Hennick said. If a document is exempt from disclosure under FOI Act, it can be discussed in executive session, however.
Q: How specific do you have to be about why you are going into executive session for personnel reasons?
A: “You can’t just say ‘Executive Session, personnel,’” Hennick said. But, you are not required to list the name of the person that will be discussed. Saying something like ‘discussion of performance of an officer’ is sufficient under the law.
Q: When can the public be excluded from a discussion of a public board or commission?
A: During legitimate executive sessions, collective bargaining discussions, employment search committees or a caucus — a meeting of board members in the same political party, as long as no other people are at the caucus meeting.
Q: Are e-mails available under an FOI request?
A: Yes, as long as the material is disclosable under the FOI act.
Q: What types of documents are exempt from disclosure?
A: Items that would pose a security risk to release. Many, but not all, personnel documents.Teacher evaluations. There’s a list of exemptions, exceptions and exclusions to the public records law.
Q: How long does a public entity have to respond to the request?
A: A response must be sent within four days — but that doesn’t necessarily mean the documents must be provided within four days. The public documents must be provided “promptly,” but a specific time period is not listed under the law. The response can indicate the time period it will take for the records to be made available.
“The FOI Act never means you must drop everything and do it and bring everything to a screeching halt,” Hennick said.
Q: At what time does a document become public? Must the public wait until a board has reviewed a document to get a copy of it?
A: Once the document is sent to the public agency or board, it becomes public, not once the full board meets to discuss the document.
Q: What about records in Superior Court?
A: The FOI Commission does not have jurisdiction over the court procedures.
Q: What about when a document is in an office, but that person only works one day a week?
A: If the town/city office is open for business, that record should be accessible. FOI can’t dictate that a person talk to you about the document, but the document should be made available.
Note: Hennick is not an attorney, and his answers, while based on legal precedent, are not legal advice. Click here to read more about the FOI Commission and the FOI Act.
