Mayor Steve Hagerty Violated Open Meetings Act: Attorney General's Office

EVANSTON, IL — Evanston's mayor and city council violated the Open Meetings Act (OMA) when it called for an "emergency meeting" on the eve of county-wide labor ordinances taking effect, according to the office of Illinois Attorney General. A non-binding opinion from Deputy Public Access Counselor Neil Olson determined that Evanston failed to show that the July 1 effective date of ordinances passed last year created an "unforeseen circumstance" that required setting aside OMA's requirement that the public be provided with a minimum of 48 hours advance notice for a meeting.

Olson noted that the OMA does not offer a precise definition of the phrase "bona fide emergency" and no state appeals court has ever addressed the issue. But previous decisions from the Public Access Bureau, which determines whether public bodies are in violation of state public records laws, have found that foreseable actions "which reasonably should have been anticipated" do not constitute emergencies, Olson wrote.

A letter from the City of Evanston seeking to justify the Mayor's emergency declaration pointed out the city council did not consider the issue of Cook County's labor ordinances prior to a new mayor and city council being sworn in on May 8. It also suggested that votes by Wilmette and Skokie on June 27 and 28, respectively "created exceptional circumstances which necessitated the calling of an emergency meeting."

At the time, Evanston Clerk Devon Reid disagreed, telling Patch, "If anything, we are causing an emergency." (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest news for Evanston — or your community. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

Three Evanston residents immediately filed requests for review with the Public Access Bureau. After the meeting took place, a fourth request was filed. Evanston Now identified the four requesters as Jeff Axelrod, Betty Ester, Allison Maguire and Jared Schooley.

No action was taken at the June 30 meeting, which City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz acknowledged at the time was not an official meeting under OMA. As a result, Olson wrote, "no remedial action for this OMA violation is required."

Find the complete letter from Deputy Public Access Counselor Neil Olson below:

_{Top photo: Evanston City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz and Mayor Steve Hagerty at a gathering of the Evanston City Council June 30 | via Jonah Meadows}