O5/11/09 READER SUBMITTED COMMENTS: Availability of Town Government Information

I want to mention as additional issue in response to your article
entitled "Forget About Tea Parties: Why can't we have e-Petitions here
in Greenwich?"

You may recall that the RTM in December of 2007 unanimously passed the
"PUBLIC NOTIFICATION OF MEETINGS AND HEARINGS" resolution. (see
http://greenwichct.virtualtownhall.net/Public_Documents/GreenwichCT_Agendas/Archive2007/rtmCall12-07)

This resolution was designed to make Town government meeting
information readily and quickly available to all citizens.

Regards,
Paul Curtis

Comment:

Dear Mr. Curtis,

Your Organization has done an excellent job of keeping Greenwich residents fully informed via the cable access channels and your group's web site.

Perhaps your group's web site would be the perfect place for the town to establish a web page where citizens could start and access “ePetitions” based upon what they saw and read at the public access Channels and web site.

The Section of the agenda you refereed to is ....

6. To consider and act upon the following sense of the meeting resolution, requested by the Town Services Committee.

WHEREAS, the citizens of the Town of Greenwich (the “Town”) have the right to know when public meetings and hearings are held, their location, and a detailed agenda for said meetings; and

WHEREAS, the Representative Town Meeting (the “RTM” of the Town in its responsibility as the representatives of the electorate of the Town need to be apprised of all activities of Town Departments, Boards, Commissions, Councils and Committees, including all School Building Committees and Building Project Committees; and

WHEREAS, the First Selectman is responsible for the administration and methods of procedure with respect to such departments as defined within Section 217 of the Charter of the Town of Greenwich, Connecticut and the Town's local government access television channels.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, it is the Sense of the Meeting that the First Selectman adopted as Town policy the following:

PUBLIC NOTIFICATION OF MEETINGS AND HEARINGS

(a) The Town shall provide and maintain a display case accessible to the public in the main lobby of Town Hall for the posting of notices and agendas for all meetings and special meetings as defined in Title 1, Chapter 14, Sections 1-200, 1-225(c) and 1-225(d) and Title 7, Chapter 90, Section 7-3 of the Connecticut General Statutes.

(b) Any updates, modifications and changes to the notice and agenda of any meeting or special meeting shall be posted pursuant to paragraph (a) above within four (4) business hours from the time that they are filed with the Town Clerk. Special attention shall be paid to any update, modification or changes to the notice and agenda of any meeting filed with the Town Clerk between twenty four (24) and twenty eight (28) hours prior to the meeting or special meeting; in such cases, these shall be posted immediately.

(c) The Town shall provide an electronic version of the notices and agendas for all meetings and special meetings posted pursuant to paragraph (a) above on a single web page on the Town’s web site. The web page shall provide the following information in chronological order:

(1) The date, agency, location, time and purpose of any meeting or special meeting; and

(2) A link to the electronic version of the actual notice and agenda for such meeting or special meeting.

(d) For purposes of this policy only, the Town shall determine the formats to be utilized for the electronic notifications but shall adhere to the following guidelines in making their determination:~

(1) Use a document format that is available at no expense across all computing platforms;

(2) Have, at minimum, the agency name, date, time, location, and purpose of the public meeting or hearing electronically syndicated using an open, standard electronic syndication format for dissemination to any interested party; and

(3) Allow an interested party to subscribe to these notices and agendas, and receive the notices and agendas via electronic mail; and

(4) Be updated pursuant to paragraph (b) above.

(e) The formats described in paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) above shall be developed in consultation with the Representative Town Meeting or a Special Committee of the Representative Town Meeting.

(f) All electronic notifications described in this policy shall not constitute legal notice as required pursuant to Title 1, Chapter 14, Sections 1-225(c) and 1-225(d) and Title 7, Chapter 90, Section 7-3 of the Connecticut General Statutes. This policy shall not constitute a replacement for the notice requirements required to any citizen affected by any decision or ruling by any Town Department, Town Commission or Town Board. The electronic notifications described in subparagraph (d) of this policy shall also not constitute a replacement for the mailing of notice of meetings to persons filing written requests pursuant to Title 1, Chapter 14, Section 1-227 of the Connecticut General Statutes.

(g) All the Town's local government access television channels shall provide the information set forth in paragraphs (d)(2) and d(4) above during scheduled times in the course of its broadcast day as directed by the First Selectman.

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