WESTFIELD – A member of the City Council sent a motion to committee to assess the cost of hiring part-time scribes to record and publish the minutes of meetings for council committees, as well as other boards and commissions which currently do not have staff performing that function.
At-large Councilor David A. Flaherty argued Thursday that minutes of meetings, required under the state’s open meeting law, are chronically insufficient and fail to meet the standard required.
“There is a gap in meeting the requirements of the open meeting law,” Flaherty said, “A lot of detail is missing. There may be other options.”
“I recognize the challenge of the cost of hiring scribes to take and publish minutes, but the open meeting law requires the publication of minutes,” Flaherty said. “Often the minutes are the agenda with a list of who was present and the outcome of votes, but no comments of the discussion of issues.”
Ward 4 Councilor Mary O’Connell said that she frequently requests minutes of various meetings from the City Clerk while investigating issues before the City Council. An example of that was a vote taken by the Community Preservation Committee on an issue now in City Council Committee. O’Connell said she has yet to see a record of that meeting and the outcome of the vote.
“Sadly, minutes of committees are missing,” O’Connell said. “Something has to be done to professionalize the records of the council’s committees and other boards.”
At-large Councilor Cindy Harris said she will oppose the concept of creating another layer of clerical staff.
“I’m totally against another level of bureaucracy,” Harris said.
Currently the chairman of those committees and boards is responsible for submitting the minutes of meetings although another member of that board or commission takes notes used to generate the minutes.
Ward 3 Councilor Brian Hoose agreed with Flaherty. Hoose said it is difficult to perform the duties of chairman to run the meeting, participate in discussion and still take notes sufficient to record the minutes.
“Trying to conduct the meeting and keep a record is impossible,” Hoose said.
At-large Councilor Ralph Figy said generating the minutes of a meeting is the responsibility of the chairman.
“Passing it off is not part of our responsibility as chairman,” Figy said.
O’Connell made the motion to send the issue to the Long Range Financial Overview Committee to assess the cost and practically of the proposed part time clerical staff to records meeting. That motion was approved by a 9-3 vote.
