Global Courant 2023-05-31 07:29:13
Los Angeles County supervisors met privately on Tuesday to discuss demands from The Times that they hand over transcripts from two recent meetings following alleged violations of one of California’s fundamental open government laws.
The discussion, held as part of Tuesday’s closed session board encountercame after a lawyer representing The Times sent a letter to regulators accusing them of twice violating the Brown Act, which aims to ensure the public can attend local government meetings.
Below the Brown law, local authorities are allowed to discuss certain topics behind closed doors. These topics may include lawsuits, employee performance reviews, or union negotiations. Local governments must specify the topic and publish it on an agenda prior to the meeting.
“What you can’t do is use that as a cover to talk about policy-oriented decisions that the public has a right to be a part of,” said attorney Kelly Aviles, who wrote the April 21 letter on behalf of The Times.
The Times alleged that the county had violated the Brown Act in closed sessions March 24 And April 18 – meetings that took place at a time of crisis for the county probation department. The March 24 meeting was held the day after state regulators warned county officials that the state was likely to decide to close the county’s two youth halls.
In both meetings, the province placed “evaluations of the performance of department heads” on the agenda for the closed session. The Times claims in its letter that the board actually used the time for a broader discussion of the Probation Service.
The letter quotes a statement issued by Board Chair Janice Hahn saying the March 24 closed session was held to “find a path forward to keep both the youth in our halls and our staff safe and supported.”
Aviles argued in her letter that such a conversation would be considered a much broader policy issue than what the Brown Act allows.
“Moreover, a pre-emptive discussion about the state of provincial juvenile facilities or their possible closures extends well beyond the staff exception,” the letter states.
A spokesman for Hahn declined to comment.
In addition to requesting the transcripts, the letter asks the county to “refrain from similar violations in the future.”
