Open-meeting ruling against regents hailed

Tuesday, April 14, 1998 | 9:08 a.m.

Kent Lauer says the ruling against the regents for the University and Community College System of Nevada is a substantial defeat for secrecy in government.

"I'm not surprised the Supreme Court found the regents violated the law," he said.

Lauer said the law is clear that electronic devices such as fax machines and telephone can't be used to make secret decisions.

"I'm surprised the regents' attorney (former counsel Don Klasic) fought this case so aggressively because he didn't have the facts or the law on his side," he added.

Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa added the court decision Friday was "a very important precedent now that we are in the age of the fax machine and e-mail."

The court held the regents violated the open meeting law when they conducted fax communications over possible censure of fellow Regent Nancy Price of North Las Vegas.

The court said voting by telephone or fax to make a public decision, whether the decision is to act or not, violates the state's open meeting law.

Price in 1995 was critical of other regents for the method used to select presidents of UNLV and Western Nevada Community College and an external auditor for the university system.