Council Violated Spirit of FOI Law
by February 5, 2001 12:00 am 62 views
We believe the Fayetteville City Council violated the spirit of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act on Jan. 16 when it voted 5-4 in private for an interim city attorney, then convened in public to stage a fake unanimous vote.
Any way you look at it, it was public deception.
The FOI allows executive sessions to consider the hiring and firing of employees, but voting must be done in public after the executive session. Local newspapers reported that the “unofficial” vote in executive session was a 4-4 tie between Kit Williams and LaGayle McCarty, with Mayor Dan Coody breaking the tie in favor of Williams.
Some of the aldermen were later incensed when one of their own, Trent Trumbo, told the press about the unofficial vote.
All we have to say about that is: Thank you, Trent Trumbo. Trumbo is currently seeking an Attorney General’s opinion on the matter.
What the council did may have been legal, but it was deceptive nonetheless.