Let the sunshine in: Springfield’s troubles with open government – March 20, 2014

Mayor Mike Houston calls the shots at Springfield city council meetings. And hizzoner wasn’t much interested in following rules or listening to anyone when nine people signed up to speak about Hunter Lake, the city’s proposed alternate water source, at the March 4 council meeting.“There’ll be a three-minute limit on each individual,” Houston announced before testimony began. “Then we can have a discussion after we’ve heard from members of the audience.” That didn’t sound right to Ward 5 Ald. Sam Cahnman. “Don’t our rules say that citizens have five minutes?” the alderman asked.

The city’s disregard of so-called sunshine laws has cost taxpayers. Since Houston took office in 2011, the city has lost or settled five lawsuits filed under the state Freedom of Information Act and the state Open Meetings Act. Taxpayers have shelled out nearly $170,000 to plaintiffs and lawyers, and the tab is still open on two lawsuits, thanks to city appeals of adverse rulings by judges. The city hasn’t won a single case.

Injunction no help

Houston’s recent refusal to follow rules regarding the public’s right to speak during council meetings came exactly two weeks after Sangamon County circuit court judge John Schmidt issued an injunction in a lawsuit filed by yours truly under the Open Meetings Act. I sued after the city council went into executive session last November to talk about privatizing Oak Ridge Cemetery. Schmidt ordered the city to release a tape of the illegal meeting and issued an injunction forbidding future violations of the Open Meetings Act.

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The city on March 4 broke the law again by not following established rules allowing citizens to address the council, according to attorney Don Craven, who successfully sued the city for violating the Open Meetings Act by discussing Oak Ridge Cemetery behind closed doors. It’s not complicated: State law says that the public must be allowed to address public bodies such as the city council according to rules made by the public body.

“It is my opinion that the actions of the mayor in denying Mr. Hanrahan his five minutes does not comport with the requirements of the rules set by the city council, and since it doesn’t comport with the rules set by the city council, it doesn’t comport with the Open Meetings Act,” Craven says. “It would be yet another violation.”

Secret cemetery talks

The zeal with which the Houston administration kept secret a dead-on-arrival proposal to put Oak Ridge Cemetery under private management began long before the council broke the law by discussing the idea behind closed doors in November.

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After being sued, the council had a chance to make amends by voluntarily releasing a recording and minutes of the illegal meeting before a judge could issue an order. Ward 7 Ald. Joe McMenamin sponsored an ordinance in December to do precisely that, but couldn’t get enough votes to get the measure out of committee, with aldermen saying they feared such a move would weaken their defense of my lawsuit.Two months later, the city lost the case. In addition to ordering the city to release the recording of the meeting, Judge Schmidt told my attorney to prepare a bill for services rendered that taxpayers will pay.