NEW BLOOMFIELD - Multiple complaints from residents resulted in the Missouri Attorney General's office taking a look at New Bloomfield city government practices.
According to a letter from Assistant Attorney General Jason Lewis, several individuals have made Sunshine Law complaints against the city of New Bloomfield. The letter was obtained by TV station KRCG and shared with the Fulton Sun.
Lewis asked that Mayor Terry Shaw respond to the allegation and requested documents include the dates of all City Council meetings held between October 2017 and July 2018, copies of all meeting notices, agendas and minutes for each meeting, and a copy of the city's Sunshine Law policy.
The assistant attorney general outlined six issues raised by the complaints. The complaints address everything from cancelled meetings to meetings allegedly held without public notice.
First, complaints claim that between January and March 2018, the City Council began disbanding the New Bloomfield Police Department without adequately notifying city residents. The city apparently cited a particular part of the Sunshine Law to close meetings about the topic, Lewis said.
Section 610.021(3) allows governments to close meetings related to personnel decisions and involving the personal information of city employees, such as hiring and firing.
"As we understand the situation, the city made numerous public statements asserting that the police force was disbanded solely due to budgetary reasons," he said. "As used in the statute, 'personal information' does not include budgetary concerns."
Second, complaints allege that in May, City Council members met to discuss paying the city of Holts Summit for law enforcement assistance, but did not provide public notice.
Third, the letter states, a complaint alleged that the council held a meeting to appoint a mayor pro tempore on April 26 without providing public notice.
Fourth, a complaint states that on May 17 or 18, after the City Council cancelled a planned meeting, a city resident prevented members of the public from entering City Hall on grounds that the council was "discussing matters pertaining to the city."
Another complaint alleged that the council sometimes votes to adjourn into closed session without citing a Sunshine Law provision. Several complaints state that the council holds various types of closed meetings without notifying the public, Lewis stated.
A complaint also alleged that the city charged a citizen nearly $250 for 13 hours of work to search for documents in response to a March public records request.
"The complaint contends that the time spent is excessive because the city has only four filing cabinets holding its documents, and that the fees are excessive because the city uses only unpaid volunteers, not paid employees, to assemble the responsive documents," Lewis stated. "This complaint also contends that the city failed to provide many of the requested documents."
Lewis said that the city of New Bloomfield should provide responses and the documents he requested by July 6.
Shaw could not be reached for comment.