Attend all of your town meetings and record them. Use an old smart phone. Erase all the data. Take it to every meeting and either voice record or video record the meeting from as soon as you walk in the room till you leave. Meetings may not follow the Agenda. Guest may speak out of … [Read more…]
It is in your best interest to film every public meeting with your town. New York State Open Meeting Law allows you to film meetings as long as you are not disruptive. https://opengovernment.ny.gov/open-meetings-law 1. Buy a tripod. I like UBeesize Selfie Stick Tripod for about $20 on Amazon because it includes a phone holder and … [Read more…]
New York State Law requires the town to provide all documents to be discussed at a town meeting within 24 hours before or at the meeting. Section 103 of NYS Open Meeting Law may be found here: https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PBO/103 Know what your town has drafted before its discussed at the board meeting. At least three days … [Read more…]
“Bills by Kaplan and Paulin will ensure all meeting documents and minutes be made available to the public in a timely fashion. Following passage in both houses, the bills now go to the Governor Study by the New York Coalition for Open Government shows 20% of local governments fail to post meeting documents online … [Read more…]
“A report from the New York Coalition for Open Government reviewing compliance by town planning boards across the state with Open Meetings Law document posting requirements gave the town of Amsterdam Planning Board a failing grade. The report examined whether 20 town planning boards statewide posted meeting documents online as required by state Open … [Read more…]
“Maybe you were one of those local governments lucky enough not to get picked by the New York Coalition for Open Government for scrutiny about how well they share information with their constituents. But if you were put on the spot today to produce the information, what grade would your community get? That’s the … [Read more…]
“The mayor of Scotia is defending the low grade the village received by a coalition that watches whether municipal governments follow state Open Meetings Law, while the mayor of Cobleskill is disputing its failing grade. “I think we’re doing what they asked for,” said Scotia Mayor Tom Gifford on Thursday. The New York Coalition … [Read more…]
“Rotterdam residents have had to search really hard to figure out what times Town Board meetings happen because the town is not adhering to rules governing proper meeting notices. “Could we be a little more transparent—fully, definitely,” said Board Member Joseph Guidarelli Thursday, following a Wednesday meeting at which the Town Board violated state … [Read more…]
““We the people.” Those three words, the first three words of the U.S. Constitution, are often cited as justification for citizens exercising their constitutional rights. But those three words apply in a broader sense to the definition of government itself. “We the people.” It’s our government. We own it. We pay for it. We … [Read more…]