FOIL Request for Written Explanations for Waivers of 72 Hours Notice

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the New York Freedom of Information Law, I hereby request the following records:

I am requesting a copy of any and all written explanations provided by Capital Region BOCES regarding emergency situations that necessitated a waiver of 72 hours notice. Specifically, I am requesting the written explanation of the emergency situation and the reason why waiting for the full 72-hour notice period would be impractical or detrimental to the public interest. A list of meeting dates where 72 hour notice was waived is listed below.

Please note that Advisory Opinion 13126 states that public bodies are required to document the emergency situation and the need to hold a meeting or provide documents with less than 72 hours notice. Therefore, I am requesting copies of any such documentation, including any notes, memos, or other records related to the emergency situations and the decisions to hold a meeting with less than 72 hours notice.

Here is a list of the meeting dates for which I am requesting written explanations:

08/21/17
05/15/19
05/23/18
02/27/14
06/17/17
12/15/14
08/03/17
12/19/11
09/21/15
12/10/18
05/19/14
09/19/16
12/18/17
08/07/17
05/21/18
05/16/16
02/16/17
10/20/14
07/24/17
02/22/16
07/25/17
03/29/17
11/20/17
01/11/18
09/15/14
12/20/10
07/25/16
01/21/16
09/19/11
06/18/12
12/16/13
08/26/13
01/05/17
08/25/14
03/18/19
10/17/11
04/13/17
07/17/17
09/18/17
05/15/17
03/21/16
06/25/16
09/16/13
07/16/18
04/09/14
04/06/16
03/20/17
01/12/12
05/21/12
07/16/12
02/16/12
03/19/18
04/24/17
12/19/16
11/17/14
10/17/16
07/20/15
11/16/15
11/21/16
08/15/16
04/11/18
07/16/18
08/24/15
02/08/17
07/10/14
02/18/14
06/05/14
10/21/13
03/28/17
01/12/17
05/30/18
03/17/14
02/15/18
06/20/16
11/18/13
01/23/14
06/18/18
06/19/17
10/15/15
07/10/17
10/16/17
09/17/18
10/15/18
08/20/18
11/15/18
01/17/19
02/14/19
05/16/19
06/17/19
07/15/19
08/19/19
09/16/19
10/21/19
11/25/19
12/16/20
02/13/20
03/16/20
04/20/20
05/18/20
06/15/20
07/20/20
08/17/20
09/21/20
10/19/20
11/02/20
11/16/20
12/17/20
01/14/21
02/11/21
03/15/21
12/17/15
07/15/13
04/29/21
05/16/22
05/17/21
06/21/21
07/19/21
08/09/21
09/20/21
10/18/21
11/15/21
12/20/21
01/13/22
02/17/22
03/21/11
04/13/22
06/16/22
07/14/22
08/15/22
09/12/22
10/13/22
11/14/22
12/19/22
01/12/23
02/16/23

Thank you for your attention to this matter. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me.

New York State Open Meetings Law, specifically section 104(4)(b) which states that "In the event of an emergency requiring immediate action, a public body may conduct a meeting without notice as long as it publicly states the reason or reasons why such meeting was not practicable to notice as provided in subdivision one of this section."

Additionally, the New York State Committee on Open Government has issued several advisory opinions that emphasize the importance of documenting the emergency situation and the need for the meeting. For example, Advisory Opinion 13126 states that "In order to establish that there was an emergency that warranted dispensing with the 72-hour notice requirement, a written explanation of the emergency should be prepared."

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 5 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Jackson Parker

I pen this correspondence with great respect for your office and the duties it entails. In the spirit of transparency and public service, I hereby appeal the response to my Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request, dated the 7th day of March in the year 2023, to which I received your response on the 10th day of April in the same year.

In my initial request, I sought any and all written explanations provided by the esteemed Capital Region BOCES regarding emergency situations that necessitated a waiver of 72 hours notice for meetings. The response I received, much to my chagrin, indicated that there were no records responsive to my request.

While the district may distill the issue down to an accidental template that has been used for multiple years, the actions and specifics being asked for pertain to all meetings for which publicly (error or not) the district claimed to waive the 72-hour notice, as noted in N.Y. Pub. Off. Law § 104. It has come to my attention that there were indeed meetings in the winter and spring of 2022 where location and access were changed last minute. This led to members of the public being abandoned when attempting to attend these meetings, and their right to speak at these meetings was restricted last minute, without documentation or explanation in the minutes regarding the emergency requirements to modify the place and time of the meeting. This fact supports the assertion that not all waivers can be construed as an accident. For the accident to occur once or twice would be one thing, but the board and their counsel have reviewed and approved these agendas and minutes on 100+ occasions, and it was only after this FOIL request that the issue was finally addressed.

In light of this, I wish to clarify my request and focus on the modifications and last-minute additions to the agendas within the 72-hour window. I humbly request the following:

Copies of any and all documents, including but not limited to meeting minutes, that display or expound upon the last-minute additions to the agendas and any modifications to the notice, place of meeting, online access link, or other material aspects of the agenda within the 72-hour window for the meetings listed in my original request.

Any and all written explanations, if available, regarding the last-minute agenda additions and modifications to the notice, place of meeting, online access link, or other material aspects of the agenda within the 72-hour window for the meetings listed in my original request, as well as any instances in which the district claimed to waive the 72-hour notice, whether by error or not. This should include explanations of instances where the public's right to speak at these meetings was restricted without proper documentation or justification.

I would like to emphasize that my request is made in the interest of transparency and for the betterment of the general public. I kindly request your cooperation in providing the information sought.

Hello Anita,

We have not yet received any response to the following appeal that had been mailed out to your office on April 30, 2023. I have attached it to this email for your convenience. Please reply to this email to let us know you have received it.

Thank You,

MuckRock Staff

Hello Sharon,

Thank you for taking the time this morning to discuss next steps regarding these requests and appeals. This is one of the appeals that requires follow up. Please let me know if you need anything else.

Sincerely,

MuckRock Staff