IT IS TIME FOR THE STATE TO ENFORCE
STATE LAWS!
Under the provisions of the
“Home Rule” the state cannot interfere with the daily operations of a
Municipality. However, even under the “Home Rule” Municipalities cannot violate
or ignore Maine law. The Town
Council has violated Maine Revised Statutes, Title 1: General, Statute 405 Executive sessions.
According to the latest Agenda, July 21,
2015, Agenda Item 2015-218 Order – 1 MRSA Statute 405 (6)(e) Consultations with
legal counsel but did not list the appropriate Agenda Items being discussed
such as DEP Consent Agreement; Revaluation Decision or Interlocal Agreement for
the Code Enforcement and Stormwater Services.
I understand the need to
keep from placing the Municipality at a substantial disadvantage. No
one needs to know the specifics of what is said in Executive Session but the
Public has a right to know what is going on in regards to these matters in
accordance with Maine Statute 401.
(Click on each to print out)
Tuesday night, Chairman Pesce
requested a motion to move to Executive Session and it was moved and
seconded. At no time did anyone state
why they were moving into an Executive Session except to consult with the
attorney. After approximately 45 minutes,
the Council returned and continued on with the meeting. No Councilor made any motions nor was there a
vote taken. Everyone thought they would tell the people what was going on when
it came to the three Agenda Items.
When Agenda Item 2015-210 DEP
Consent Agreement and 2015-211 Revaluation Decision came up there was a motion
to accept as stated in Executive Session and it was seconded. Both were approved by a vote of 6-0. At no time were the people told what is going on or provided
a summary of what just took place. Under
Maine Statute the people have a right to know what is going on but they do not
have a right to know the specifics of what was said in Executive Session. The third Agenda Item was
tabled.
Maine Statute 405 outlines
the procedures to be followed pertaining to Executive Sessions. This statute was not followed and the people were denied the
right to know what is going on with the DEP Consent Agreement and the
Revaluation Decision.
Where is the
transparency when the people are denied the right to know what is going on and
how their tax dollars are being spent?
Now we are going to look at
the Council Working Rules, written by the Council, for the manner in which
meeting are supposed to be conducted. Paragraph d(2) Meeting Length states “All
council meetings, workshops, or executive sessions shall be conducted, except
in extraordinary circumstances within 2 ½ hours of the time the meeting is
called to order. At regularly scheduled
meetings, this will call for adjournment on or before 9:30 P.M. The council may, by waiving these rules,
agree to extend the time for meetings if it is deemed appropriate.” The meeting on
July 21st began at 7:30 P.M and was adjourned at approximately 11:30
P.M. and there was no motion to waive the time restriction; Chairman Pesce
totally disregarded this provision and continued the meeting. It was Chairman
Pesce’s responsibility, along with the Town Manager, to create the Agenda to be
accomplished within the 2 ½ hours time frame.
This was also ignored. If you
look at the Agenda above, you can tell it was too long and needed to be split.
These continued violations of
Maine law and the Council’s own working rules need to be stopped
immediately.
The State needs to review the actions of
Chairman Pesce and Town Manager, Diane Barnes to ensure that Maine law is being
complied with at all times.
Larry Fillmore
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