Tougher open meeting law urged

Siobhan McDonough

Thursday, May 10, 2001 | 9:49 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Nevada's open meeting law needs tightening to ensure public officials can't circumvent the law by meeting in groups that make up less than a quorum, a lawmaker told a Senate panel Wednesday.

"There have been some controversies," Assemblywoman Vivian Freeman told the Senate Government Affairs Committee during a hearing on Assembly Bill 225.

The law's ambiguity has resulted in great taxpayer expense, including legal fees to defend agencies, public employee time spent on the issue and court costs, Freeman, D-Reno, said.

"This is an honest attempt to restore public trust," she said. "If we don't have that, what do we have?"

Freeman's AB225 amends the law to clearly state a violation would occur if officials who meet make up a quorum, and decisions on public issues are reached during such gatherings without proper public notice.

Currently, Nevada law states that a meeting must be public if a quorum of an elected or appointed body is present. But Freeman said elected bodies sometimes try to get around quorum requirements by meeting in smaller groups.

Kent Lauer of the Nevada Press Association said some boards have used "serial meetings" to discuss issues away from the public and then take action in an open meeting with little or no discussion.

Senate Government Affairs Chairwoman Ann O'Connell, R-Las Vegas, asked Freeman about the bill's potential costs, estimated by Attorney General Frankie Sue Del Papa at $180,000 a year. The money would hire a new deputy district attorney, an investigator and a part-time secretary.

"To add a fiscal note at this time is completely unacceptable," said Freeman.