Metro’s board of directors is slated to discuss how they govern the transit agency on Thursday — the first official meeting since two separate reports damned the transit agency’s structure, especially the board itself.
A task force of top business leaders and elected officials had made recommendations last month to restructure the board. Metro’s own Riders’ Advisory Council also came out with their own reforms, also recommending changes to the structure.
Both reports blamed the board for causing some of the problems with the agency’s safety culture that helped lead to the deadly June 22, 2009, Red Line crash.
The board meeting, though, is slated to occur behind closed doors in what the board calls an “executive session.” It was not immediately clear why the meeting would not be public; several key board members did not return calls in advance of the meeting.
UPDATE: Board Chairman Peter Benjamin told The Washington Examiner the board’s meeting was closed to the public because they were planning to discuss legislative and personnel matters, “both of which are good reasons,” he added.
Closed meetings are usually allowed for local government boards on personnel issues only when discussing specific paid employees to protect those individuals’ privacy. Metro’s board members aren’t paid by Metro; and the two governance reports did not single out individual personnel.
What’s so private about board structure? And why are legislative issues private?
