A recent public records request submitted to the Co-Chair of the Wallowa Union Railroad Authority board of directors suggests issues complying with public meeting laws.
Public Notice
Union County posted the following public meeting online prior to the June monthly meeting of the Wallowa Union Railroad Authority board:
The Wallowa Union Railroad Authority (WURA) will meet on Tuesday, June 4, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. at the Elgin Depot. The Board will consider the adoption of the FY 24-25 budget and also hear a request from the Rails & Trails Consortium for authorization to pursue a conditional use permit through the Union County Planning Commission. This is a public meeting where comments will be accepted.
Public Records Request
One June 12, Gregg Kleiner of the Joseph Branch Trail Consortium sent the following email to WURA Co-Chairs Susan Roberts (Wallowa) and Matt Scarfo (Union), both County Commissioners, regarding a public records request sent June 6.
Hi Dave, Commissioner Roberts, and Commissioner Scarfo,
On behalf of JBTC, I’m following up on my request to Dave Riley one week ago on June 6th (see below) requesting a copy of the minutes from the public meeting of the WURA board that was held on Tuesday, June 4th at 5 p.m. at the Elgin Train Depot.
JBTC did not receive the requested minutes in time for the JBTC Board meeting this past Monday, June 10th, at 6 p.m., which makes if difficult to respond to the 18 conditions WURA has informed Anderson Perry that it wants included in a motion before agreeing to sign as the Landowner for the CUP application in Union County, for which JBTC is the Applicant. Please inform me as to when JBTC can expect to receive the minutes from this public meeting.
JBTC also requests details (time, date, online dial-in information, meeting announcement wording, etc.) for the July public WURA board meeting.
I also want to note that we heard from at least 15 people during and after the meeting who tried to call in using the phone number and code provided, but the phone system was not functioning well, so they could not participate. It would be prudent to use a better phone conference system for future public WURA board meetings.
Commissioner Susan Roberts Responds
Commissioner Roberts sent the following response:
Gregg,
You have this process a bit backward. WURA had a work session with Anderson Perry to discuss those items that could/would be included in a CUP application. There were no minutes taken at that meeting. WURA will not be addressing the CUP in the future. I cannot speak for the other Board members but only myself. The WURA ROW (IS NOT) public property. If people are on the tracks for any reason other than those officially allowed by the Board then they are trespassing. I am not inclined at this moment to proceed with the CUP against the wishes and statements brought forth by the citizens of Union County who live and work along the track. Your group has been instructed to stop using ‘public’ in your announcements.
Public Meeting Law
ORS 192.650, Recording or written minutes required; content; fees, says the following regarding minutes:
The governing body of a public body shall provide for the sound, video or digital recording or the taking of written minutes of all its meetings. Neither a full transcript nor a full recording of the meeting is required, except as otherwise provided by law, but the written minutes or recording must give a true reflection of the matters discussed at the meeting and the views of the participants. All minutes or recordings shall be available to the public within a reasonable time after the meeting…
While there is no publicly available information identifying the WURA Board’s custodian of public records, most County Commissioners are aware that public bodies are obligated to take minutes in written, video, or audio form. Such minutes should have been provided to the requesting party, unless the minutes had not yet been created. While state law does not require the creation of a record, statute does obligate public bodies to create minutes. Furthermore, the description of the public meeting as a “work session” conflicts with the public notice. Work sessions held by public bodies in Oregon, as a rule, do not accept public comment. The public notice specified that public comment would be received, and was ultimately accepted during the meeting by the presiding officers.
ORS 192.670, Meetings by means of telephone or electronic communication, says the following regarding remote participation in public meetings:
(3) All meetings held by a governing body of a public body, excluding executive sessions, must provide to members of the general public, to the extent reasonably possible, an opportunity to:
(a) Access and attend the meeting by telephone, video or other electronic or virtual means;
The email from Commissioner Roberts does not address Kleiner’s complaint that members of the public were unable to participate remotely. Right Now Oregon could not independently verify issues with the WURA board’s telecommunications service.
Public Meeting Law Enforcement
As of 2023, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission enforces public meeting law. Previously, individuals who believe their rights were violated had to file a civil suit in circuit court. The complaint process is noted on the GEC website.
- Before submitting a Public Meetings Law Complaint, mandatory prerequisites must be satisfied. You must:
- File a written grievance with the public body at issue, within 30 days of the date of the meeting where the alleged violation occurred.
- Wait 21 days for the Public Body to respond to your grievance in writing.
- When submitting a Public Meetings Law Complaint:
- You are required to upload documentation that you have satisfied these mandatory prerequisites.
Accordingly, a member of the public concerned that public meeting laws were violated has until July 4, 2024 to file a grievance with the WURA Board. The WURA Board would have three weeks to respond before a complainant could submit the matter to the Government Ethics Commission for investigation.
Download Right Now Oregon on the Google Play Store
About the Author
