Crystal Lake Township Board of Supervisors
AGO 2019-O-5
No. 2019-O-05
North Dakota Attorney General Opinions
April 12, 2019
ISSUED
TO: Crystal Lake Township Board of Supervisors
OPEN RECORDS AND MEETINGS SUMMARY OPINION
CITIZEN’S
REQUEST FOR OPINION
This
office received a request for an opinion under N.D.C.C.
§ 44-04-21.1 from Kyra Hill asking whether the Crystal
Lake Township Board of Supervisors violated N.D.C.C. §
44-04-20 by failing to post notice of a meeting.
FACTS
PRESENTED
The
Crystal Lake Township Board of Supervisors held a special
meeting on March 1, 2019, in preparation of their upcoming
annual meeting.
ISSUE
Whether
the Crystal Lake Township Board of Supervisors provided
notice in substantial compliance with N.D.C.C. §
44-04-20 for its March 1, 2019, special meeting.
ANALYSIS
A
governing body of a public entity must post notice for its
meetings in substantial compliance with N.D.C.C. §
44-04-20 which includes preparing an agenda with the date,
time, location, topics to be considered, and notice of any
executive session.[1] Section 44-04-20, N.D.C.C., also
mandates where this agenda must be posted.[2] “Filing a yearly
schedule of upcoming meetings does not relieve a public
entity from its obligation to post an agenda for each meeting
as required [by N.D.C.C. § 44-04-20].”[3]
“Topics that may be considered at an emergency or
special meeting are limited to those included in the
notice.”[4]
The
Board of Supervisors published the date of the meeting in its
local newspaper and provided a text message informing a
member of the public who requested personal notice of the
date of the meeting.[5] However, the Board of Supervisors
did not prepare an agenda for the March 1, 2019, special
meeting, and did not post notice of the agenda prior to the
meeting.[6]
CONCLUSION
The
Crystal Lake Township Board of Supervisors failed to provide
notice for its March 1, 2019, special meeting in compliance
with N.D.C.C. §...
