Selectmen Vote to Require OML Training For All Boards & Committees

Board of Selectmen Chairman Josh Degen, in an effort to ensure that the town officials are well educated on the Commonwealth of Mass. Open Meeting Laws, recommended to his fellow board members the town request training on the Open Meeting Laws for elected and appointed officials and their support staff to be conducted by the Attorney General's office.

This follows a July 7, 2014 letter from Attorney General Martha Coakley's office stating that the Groton Board of Selectmen violated the open meeting law when, in April, then Chairman Peter Cunningham did serial polling of members of the board by phone - some receiving several calls, seeking approval to waive a $4,500 building permit for a private business that had been destroyed by fire.

At the time this occurred, Degen and fellow board member Jack Petropoulos both raised their concern to Cunningham that this polling was in violation of the Open Meeting Law.

Chairman Degen stated that although Groton Town Counsel Kopelman and Paige did not think that Cunningham and the board violated the Open Meeting Law, the AG's office was clear that polling of members of the board by phone was indeed a violation. Degen pointed out that the AG took no action, but "told us not to do it again."

Cunningham said he does not dispute the AG ruling, and that "there is room for improvement, and to take insights from this."

His colleague Stuart Schulman acknowledged, "We violated the Open Meeting Law," and then asked if officials would "learn anything" if they took this training.

Selectman Jack Petropoulos pointed out that this is a "matter of public trust" and pointed out the necessity of policing email communications as well. "The current Board of Selectmen violated the Open Meeting Law and it would be very useful to take this training."

Cunningham commented, "I don't see the need...we have had them out here before."

Finance Committee Chairman Gary Green told the board that the Open Meeting Law regulations are not obvious and that it is "critical to bring in training," adding that that there is a lot of legalese and the AG representative can explain how it is interpreted.

Newly appointed FinCom member Art Prest agreed with Green. "I have observed some of these things," he said and suggested training where officials can ask questions. "I sat in some of these meetings where I asked if we just violated the Open Meeting Law."

One resident pointed out that this was the first time he saw a violation by the Board of Selectmen, but added that when they discussed it following the complaint, one selectman commented that it was "much ado about nothing," while another said it was not a violation.

In the end, and after several modified motions and changes, the Board voted 4 to 0 with Eliot abstaining, to conduct AG training for all elected and appointed boards and committees as well as support staff, using both training and viewing of video that would require a statement attesting that they had watched the video.

Chairman Degen stressed, "This is serious. If you don't do it, we could rescind the appointment."