M-News sues Dallas to get e-mail records

Reprinted from The Dallas Morning News

DALLAS — The Dallas Morning News has sued the city of Dallas, asking a judge to order the city to release e-mails related to housing and to a tax abatement for oilman Ray Hunt.

The lawsuit, filed July 14, arises from two public information requests filed by News reporters late last year. The newspaper says the e-mails haven’t been released promptly, as required bylaw.

“Government business needs to be conducted in the open,” said Belo general counsel Russ Coleman. “If these things are allowed to continue and aren’t resolved promptly, I don’t think the interest of the public is served.”

City Attorney Tom Perkins said that he was on vacation and hadn’t seen the lawsuit.

In November, City Hall reporter Dave Levinthal requested e-mails sent and received by City Manager Mary Suhm, Mayor Laura Miller and several economic development officials that contained words such as Ray abatement.

The request was made shortly after the City Council passed over the mayor’s objections a $6.3 million tax abatement for a new downtown corporate headquarters for Hunt’s company, Hunt Consolidated.

In December, reporter Reese Dunklin asked to review e-mails sent and received by Miller, the city housing director and their staffs.

The city referred both requests to the state attorney general’s office, citing a number of exemptions to the Texas Public Information Act.

In rulings issued in January and February, the attorney general’s office agreed with the city that some e-mails could be withheld but ordered it to release others. In late March, the News’ attorney Paul Watler sent a letter asking Mr. Perkins “to clear up a protracted road block” regarding the requests. Watler said the newspaper was required to pay a $3,500 deposit for the records.

Alpine OR case continues

PECOS — The constitutionality of the Texas Open Meetings Act is now in the hands of a West Texas federal judge, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

A ruling, which poses the most serious challenge to the Texas Open        Meetings Law since it was passed in 1967, is not expected soon. After a        one-day trial last month, U.S. District Judge Robert Junell gave the parties until late September to file additional pleadings.

City balks on board meeting in private

LINDALE — A day after the City Council refused to appoint representatives to the Lindale Area Alliance over concerns about open government principles, the alliance’s organizer said he sought to assuage fears that the alliance would conduct public business in secret, the Lindale News & Times reported.

Proposed by the Lindale Area Chamber of Commerce, the alliance would be a partnership of businesses, and representatives from governmental bodies in the Lindale area, aimed at fostering communication. The council balked at the idea because alliance meetings wouldn’t be open to the public.

Barham Fulmer, vice president of the chamber, emphasized the alliance is simply a forum for the exchange of ideas and has no decision-making authority.

He said he deliberately requested governmental agencies appoint no more than one elected official to the alliance so there would be no worries about conducting public business behind closed doors.