The D.C. Council is expected to approve legislation next week designed to prevent themselves, and other District boards and commissions, from ducking behind closed doors to discuss the public’s business.
Ward 5 Council Member Vincent Orange, chairman of the government operations committee, finally assembled enough members Thursday to move the open meetings measure to the full council. Twice in the past two weeks the mark-up had been thwarted for a lack of quorum — including once when three members were meeting behind closed doors discussing the bill.
“This is a huge step forward,” said Council Member Kathy Patterson, who co-introduced the legislation.
The measure ensures the public’s right to be informed of, and present at, meetings of public bodies “at which members consider, conduct or advise on public business … ” The current “sunshine” law allows any public body to go into executive [nonpublic] session at virtually any moment. Any member of the council, or a board or commission, disobeying the new law could be fined up to $100 for each violation.
The bill was significantly amended in committee, with the backing of the ACLU and the Maryland, Delaware, D.C. Press Association, to quell concerns of some legislators who viewed the original version as paralyzing. Most notably, the panel agreed that a quorum of a public body must be present to constitute a public meeting. In the original version, it was a “majority of the quorum,” which, in the case of a council committee, would have been two members.
The bill applies to the council, Board of Education and DC Public Charter School Board and numerous quasi-government agencies, such as the Water and Sewer Authority. Council Member Phil Mendelson sought to include all public bodies — even those under the mayor’s cabinet — within the law. He was rejected.
“If we’re going to apply this to the legislative branch, we should apply it to the executive branch,” Mendelson said. “Where we need this law is where decisions are made.”
