By mailto:mprest@erinet.com - Mike_Presta
February 19, 2009 6:53 AM | http://www.middletownjournal.com/o/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/middletownnews/entries/2009/02/17/council_needs_to_clarify_the_m.html#comment-250203203 - Link to this
Sorry, Mr. Richter, but I must disagree. First, City Council did specifically appoint and publicly announce which Council members were to sit on which subcommittees, and in no case were there more than three appointed to any one subcommittee. This is a matter of record. Please review the official council meeting minutes, all reviewed by and approved by the full city council. However, now there seems to be at least FOUR council members on the “Finance subcommittee”, and there has been mention of the “council members who could not make it” to the subcommittee meeting, and the like. And please do not ignore Councilman Schiavone’s statement at the 2/17/2009 City Council meeting wherein he suggested referring the blighted property “rehab versus demo” issue to a subcommittee so that “we can meet more—as often as we need to”! (But don’t take my word for this, see and hear it for yourself by watching a replay of that meeting at this link: This episode’s permalink ! Mr. Schiavone’s statement begins at about 74:45 on the small timer below the lower left-hand corner of the video picture.) Now Mr. Richter, you (or anyone else) can try to tell me that FOUR, or more city council members meeting to discuss city business is a “subcommittee meeting” that can occur “as often as we need to”, but I think you will find that the Ohio Attorney General, a municipal law attorney, or any other reasonable person will call it a “unpublicized special meeting of City Council” intentionally mislabeled to avoid compliance with Ohio’s “liberally construed” Sunshine Laws. In fact, even the City Manager meeting with fewer than a quorum, and then meeting with other council members (also fewer than a quorum) to discuss the same items has been subject of Ohio Supreme Court Decisions. In State ex. rel. Cincinnati Post v Cincinnati 95-1803, regarding the very same practice, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that to find such games of “legislative musical chairs” to be allowable under the Sunshine law would be to ignore the legislative intent of the statute, disregard its evident purpose, and allow an absurd result!! (Once again, don’t believe me, read this important “Freedom of the Press” decision for yourself.) Also, before you close the above embedded link, listen to Mr. Schiavone again at 86:25 of the meeting, where he talks about City Council “administering” the HUD or NSP programs. This exemplifies one of the biggest problems with this, and with all councils since at least 1999: They do NOT understand their very own function! According to Middletown’s City Charter and the general laws of the State of Ohio, the City Council is a LEGISLATIVE body! Their job is to act on legislation and resolutions, appropriate funds, and approve budgets. They are specifically forbidden to “administer” ANYTHING! This and recent councils have insisted on trying to micromanage our fair city. If any of them wish to do so, they should immediately resign and then apply for an appropriate position.