Sunday, February 24, 2013
The Open Meetings Compliance Board has received four complaints about the Carroll County commissioners since 2010 and two complaints about the Carroll County Utilities Advisory Council in 2012.
Two bills which would give the Open Meetings Act more bite have passed the Government Operations Subcommittee, according to MarylandReporter.com. Several weeks ago members of the Open Meetings Compliance Board testified in Annapolis that some entities found to be in violation of the Act disregard the violation because there are no real consequences. If the proposed bills pass, violators face penalties that include making the violation public as well as potential fines. Del. Dan Morhaim, a Baltimore County Democrat and the sponsor of HB 331, said the legislation may force government entities to take the Act more seriously. It would require government bodies to publicly announce that they violated the Open Meetings Act whenever the Board …
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
More than 20 years after its last major revision, it’s time for a complete review of the Open Meetings Act and its effectiveness at keeping the public’s business public.
Note: The following commentary appeared on Marylandreporter.com on Oct. 16, 2012 and is used with permission here. The Capital Debt Affordability Committee held a meeting without public notice several weeks ago to look at a proposal for $750 million in new debt, and then scheduled a follow-up meeting, again with no required public notice. I wrote a story about the meetings, and noted the failure of the debt committee to comply with the Open Meetings Act, but I did not file a complaint with the compliance board that enforces the act. After the story came out, an anonymous reader named Shelly called, and asked why I had not filed a complaint with the board. Board has little power The principal reason was that the board has little power to do…
Friday, February 3, 2012
The Board of Carroll County commissioners said they disagree with the ruling.
The State of Maryland Open Meetings Compliance Board has ruled that the Carroll County Board of Commissioners violated the Open Meetings Act by charging admission to its PlanMaryland: At the Crossroads forum in October. Carroll County commissioners issued a press release on Wednesday stating that they "respectfully disagree" with the ruling. Last spring, the state revealed its plan for a statewide land-planning document called PlanMaryland. On Oct. 31, the Carroll County commissioners hosted a forum to discuss PlanMaryland. The commissioners invited five speakers from around the country and opened the meeting to the public at a cost of $25 per person, which caused controversy. Some Carroll County citizens commented on Patch that the event…
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JoeEldersburg
4:48 pm on Monday, February 25, 2013
It's ironic that while bills like these move forward to put teeth in the meaning of "Open Government", our Commissioners are privately championing bills put forth by our delegation (namely Sen. Joe Getty) to increase secrecy in government. Our Commissioners continue to violate the spirit and the tenor of the existing laws with impunity, receiving "slaps on the wrist" for now several violations. … more ›