Boiler Moratorium, Citizen Comments & More!
Posted September 4, 2008
By John T. Ryan
The Peru Town Board meeting of August 25, 2008 covered several topics. Supervisor Covel and Counselors Forrence, Powers, Glushko and McDonald were present. As usual, the meeting was not without controversy.
The Board voted 5-0 to enact another 60-day moratorium on installation of outdoor furnaces. They also scheduled a special meeting for Thursday, August 28th at 5:30 p.m. at which time the Board hopes to complete drafting an outdoor wood burning law and to set a public hearing. During the course of the discussion Town Attorney Donald Biggs said the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation will very likely be enacting a state-wide regulation which will be much more strict than Peru’s proposed law. Several Town residents expressed frustration with the amount of time it is taking to enact the law.
During the meeting’s public comment period Mr. John LaRocque read a prepared statement stating he was addressing issues, which he said, come up again and again. He stated that counselors Glushko and Forrence serve only their own supporters and interests and not to further the benefit of the entire town (Mr. Glushko told perugazette.com, “My agenda is to do the best I can for the entire town. I answer to everybody in the town. I’m not sure what special interests he was talking about. Why didn’t he state who the special interests are?) (Mr. Forrence had no comment); that the town clerk has irregular office hours at best and never completes town meeting minutes in a timely manner (Town Clerk Kathy Flynn told perugazette.com, “The town clerk’s have been 9 a.m. to noon for over 30 years. All meeting minutes are done with the exception of February, March and April of this year. At times there have been four to six meetings a month.”); that the Peru Youth Commission has their meetings at their own convenience and not for the town as a whole. He said meetings should be properly advertised and conducted in an appropriate legal manner (Youth Commission Chair Lisa Gonyo told this publication, “We try to meet when most of the members are able to be there. Meetings are listed on the town calendar and people can call either John Flynn or myself to find out when we are meeting. We’re all volunteers and we do the best we can.”); that the town attorney Donald Biggs is biased and acts as if he is elected and not appointed. LaRocque alleged Biggs has a conflict of interest because he wrote a “Letter to the Editor” in support of Counselor Cortland Forrence (perugazette.com was unable to contact Mr. Biggs for comment); that Zoning Enforcement Officer Paul Blaine treats some town office staff members in an unacceptable and mean-spirited, misanthropic manner. (Mr. Blaine told perugazette.com, “I don’t believe Mr. LaRocque has ever been inside the town hall to observe the things he mentioned. I wonder where he’s getting his information from.”)
LaRocque ended his comments saying that the town would be stuck in its political muck until these people change their way of doing business or leave office.
Town Historian Ron Allen reported that about 30 people attended the August 16th archeological dig at the Heyworth/Mason Park. He said hundreds of small pieces of glass, metal, nuts, bolts, etc., typical of an industrial site were discovered. The dig was conducted as one condition of the grant(s) the town is receiving to develop the Little Au Sable River Trail and the Heyworth/Mason Park.
The Board discussed the highway department’s high fuel costs and the fact that excess monies from other departments must be transferred to the highway department fund. Counselor Powers said $15,000 was transferred about four months ago.
Water & Sewer Superintendent Greg Timmons reported that the town’s 1999 Dodge truck is being advertised for sale. Bids will be opened September 8th at 10 a.m.
The Board discussed issues resulting from the illness of the employee maintaining the town budget. Supervisor Covel expressed the view that some budget items have been placed in the wrong budget accounts. He will attempt to resolve the problem. Cortland Forrence requested that the supervisor report to the board regarding the budget status and the status of necessary town paperwork at the next board meeting.
Counselor Powers requested that the board appoint someone to review the town’s monthly retirement reports to the State of New York. He expressed concern that retirement information was not being accurately reported. Prior to the next board meeting Counselors Powers and McDonald will review the reports for January 1, 2006 to present. The board will review their findings at the Executive Session prior to the next board meeting.
Posted: September 4th, 2008 under General News, Peru News, Town Board News.
Comment from johnskibum
Time September 28, 2008 at 8:48 pm
I apologize to lisa gonyo, who does a fine job, as a volunteer, like so many others in the youth commission programs. As for their meetings and actions, they are publicly-funded by the town, and they need to abide by open meeting laws of new york, which they clearly do not:
PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW, ARTICLE 7
OPEN MEETINGS LAW
Section 100. Legislative declaration.
101. Short title.
102. Definitions.
103. Open meetings and executive sessions.
104. Public notice.
105. Conduct of executive sessions.
106. Minutes
107. Enforcement.
108. Exemptions
109. Committee on open government.
§100. Legislative declaration. It is essential to the maintenance of a democratic society that the public business be performed in an open and public manner and that the citizens of this state be fully aware of and able to observe the performance of public officials and attend and listen to the deliberations and decisions that go into the making of public policy. The people must be able to remain informed if they are to retain control over those who are their public servants. It is the only climate under which the commonweal will prosper and enable the governmental process to operate for the benefit of those who created it.
§101. Short title. This article shall be known and may be cited as “Open Meetings Law”.
§102. Definitions. As used in this article: 1. “Meeting” means the official convening of a public body for the purpose of conducting public business, including the use of videoconferencing for attendance and participation by the members of the public body. 2. “Public body” means any entity, for which a quorum is required in order to conduct public business and which consists of two or more members, performing a governmental function for the state or for an agency or department thereof, or for a public corporation as defined in section sixty-six of the general construction law, or committee or subcommittee or other similar body of such public body. 3. “Executive session” means that portion of a meeting not open to the general public.
§103. Open meetings and executive sessions. (a) Every meeting of a public body shall be open to the general public, except that an executive session of such body may be called and business transacted thereat in accordance with section one hundred five of this article. (b) Public bodies shall make or cause to be made all reasonable efforts to ensure that meetings are held in facilities that permit barrier-free physical access to the physically handicapped, as defined in subdivision five of section fifty of the public buildings law. (c) A public body that uses videoconferencing to conduct its meetings shall provide an opportunity to attend, listen and observe at any site at which a member participates.
§104. Public notice. 1. Public notice of the time and place of a meeting scheduled at least one week prior thereto shall be given to the news media and shall be conspicuously posted in one or more designated public locations at least seventy-two hours before such meeting. 2. Public notice of the time and place of every other meeting shall be given, to the extent practicable, to the news media and shall be conspicuously posted in one or more designated public locations at a reasonable time prior thereto. 3. The public notice provided for by this section shall not be construed to require publication as a legal notice. 4. If videoconferencing is used to conduct a meeting, the public notice for the meeting shall inform the public that videoconferencing will be used, identify the locations for the meeting, and state that the public has the right to attend the meeting at any of the locations.
From Speakupwny.com
Your right to know: The Open Meetings Law
By Lee Chowaniec
Jul 1, 2006, 12:08
Regarding NYS Open Government Laws, the Committee on Open Government is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Freedom of Information Law. The law provides for government and private sector transparency by granting the public the right to examine public records and to attend and hear deliberations of public bodies.
The following is taken from the published writings of the Committee on Open Government:
The Open Meetings or “Sunshine” Law went into effect in New York in 1977. Amendments that clarify and reaffirm your right to hear the deliberations of public bodies became effective on October 1, 1979.
In brief, the law gives the public the right to attend meetings of public bodies, listen to the debates and watch the decision-making process in action.
As stated in the legislative declaration in the Open Meetings Law (section 100): “It is essential to the maintenance of a democratic society that the public business be performed in an open and public manner and that the citizens of this state be fully aware of and able to observe the performance of public officials and attend and listen to the deliberations and decisions that go into the making of public policy.”
What is a Meeting?
Although the definition of “meeting” was vague as it appeared in the original law, the amendments to the law clarify the definition in conjunction with expansive interpretations of the law given by the courts. “Meeting” is defined to mean “the official convening of a public body for the purpose of conducting public business.” As such, any time a quorum of a public body gathers for the purpose of discussing public business, the meeting must be convened open to the public, whether or not there is an intent to take action, and regardless of the manner in which the gathering may be characterized.
Since the law applies to “official” meetings, chance meetings, or social gatherings, are not covered by the law. Also, the law is silent with respect to public participation. Therefore, a public body may permit you to speak at open meetings, but is not required to do so.
What is Covered by the Law?
The law applies to all public bodies. “Public body” is defined to cover entities consisting of two or more people that conduct public business and perform a governmental function for the state, for an agency of the state, or for public corporations, including cities, counties, towns, villages and school districts, for example.
In addition, committees and subcommittees are specifically included within the definition. Consequently, city councils, town boards, village boards of trustees, school boards, commissions, legislative bodies and committees and subcommittees of those groups all fall within the framework of the law.
Notice of Meetings
The law requires that notice of the time and place of all meetings be given prior to every meeting.
If a meeting is scheduled at least a week in advance, notice must be given to the public and the news media not less than 72 hours prior to the meeting. Notice to the public must be accomplished by posting in one or more designated public locations.
When a meeting is scheduled less than a week in advance, notice must be given to the public and the news media “to the extent practicable” at a reasonable time prior to the meeting. Again, notice to the public must be given by means of posting.
When Can a Meeting be Closed?
The law provides for closed or “executive” sessions under circumstances prescribed in the law. It is important to emphasize that an executive session is not separate from an open meeting, but rather is defined as a portion of an open meeting during which the public may be excluded.
To close a meeting for executive session, the law requires that a public body take several procedural steps. First, a motion must be made during an open meeting to enter into executive session; second, the motion must identify “the general area or areas of the subject or subjects to be considered;” and third, the motion must be carried by a majority vote of the total membership of a public body.
Further, a public body cannot close its doors to the public to discuss the subject of its choice, for the law specifies and limits the subject matter that may appropriately be discussed in executive session.
Based on prior experience, the town board majority will probably ignore the above violations of the law, yet the objection has been made, and they have been put on notice of this violation.
John LaRocque