Health district closes meeting without notice

MARSHALL — The chairman of the Marshall/Harrison County Health District announced in the middle of a June 27 meeting that the board would go into closed session even though one was not posted on the agenda, the Marshall News Messenger reported.

The chairman told the newspaper after the meeting that the board had sensitive matters to discuss and that it must have been an “oversight” that a closed session was not listed on the agenda.

Attorney general says sheriff must turn over records

ATLANTA — The attorney general’s office ruled that the former Cass County sheriff must release records showing an accounting of money spent to feed inmates at the county jail, the Atlanta Citizens Journal reported.

The county paid the sheriff $3 per diem to feed prisoners and the sheriff deposited the money into a personal account that he used to operate the jail’s meal plan.

The newspaper filed an open records request last December seeking an accounting of the prisoner meal expenses before the sheriff left office. The sheriff and his attorney told the newspaper the records no longer existed.

The newspaper filed a complaint and the district attorney’s office investigated but sought an attorney general’s opinion. The DA’s investigation found that the county violated the state’s competitive bidding laws by allowing the sheriff to operate the jail at a personal profit or loss.

“I hope the message this sends out is that as an elected official you will be held accountable for the expenditure of the taxpayers’ money and that you must maintain records that document that accountability,” editor Charley Harrist wrote.

The newspaper ran a followup June 10 saying the sheriff had not complied with the attorney general’s letter telling him to release the records. The sheriff’s attorney said he never received the AG’s notice.

New Braunfels holds city manager candidate list

NEW BRAUNFELS — The city council in May decided to make an offer to a candidate for the city manager’s job even though members did not vote and had not released a finalists list, the Herald Zeitung reported.

The city council had been considering three finalists for at least a week and made one an offer before finally releasing the names. At least one councilman told the newspaper the members did not vote on the candidate but that they had “reached a consensus.”

Last month the council may have violated the Open Meetings Act in an unrelated case involving a land purchase. The council authorized the mayor to buy park land but never approved the purchase in open session or placed the topic on an agenda. The council only discussed it in executive session and didn’t publicly mention it until after the manager signed a contract and put up earnest money.

The newspaper’s attorney said the council can discuss negotiations in closed session but cannot sign a contract or take a final vote.

Ballot debate heats up in Del Rio school race

DEL RIO — The election judge for the school race filed an open records request for copies of all mail-in ballots to determine if some were fraudulent, the Del Rio News Herald reported.

The judge was making the copies of the envelopes and applications when a newly elected school board member came in and demanded school personnel call the sheriff to remove her from the building. She had to stop copying and wait more than an hour for a sheriff’s investigator to show up.

The superintendent said the school’s legal counsel approved the open records request to inspect the mail-in applications and envelopes but that the actual ballots had to remain undisclosed for 60 days.

School district meets final step of judgment

STEPHENVILLE — The school district has complied with the final stage of an agreement worked out with the state attorney general’s office over an open records lawsuit, the Stephenville Empire-Tribune reported.

The state sued the district when it failed to fully comply with an opinion ordering the release of records that showed how much the district spent researching a school prayer issue. The district released the legal bills but edited and omitted some of the information.

The judgment required the district to pay the state’s attorney fees and to send key administrators and a quorum of school board members to training on the Texas Public Information Act.

Hospital district board member questions meeting

BORGER — A board member of the Hutchinson County Hospital District recently questioned the validity of a meeting in which the board took four separate actions even though only one item was listed on the agenda, The News Herald reported.

Minutes from the May 7 meeting showed that the board made four decisions but the only item on the agenda was to canvass the election ballots.

The board member also asked the local district attorney whether the commissioners court had violated the Texas Open Meetings Act when selecting a new board member to fill a vacancy.

Crystal City councilman wants new vote on contract 

CRYSTAL CITY — A city councilman formally requested that the council take a new vote on a contract because he said the original vote violated the Open Meetings Act, the Zavala County Sentinel reported. The councilman said the meeting agenda was not posted 72 hours in advance.