BREAKING STORY

Serious Questions Arise Over Whether Executives of NYC’s Animal Shelter System Broke New York State’s “Open Meetings Law”

"Anticipated Number of Attendees" A Key Question; Public May Have Right To Petition The Court For Another Public Meeting If Adequate Meeting Space Was Not Provided

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer Steps Into Debate

Did top-ranking members of the City's shelter system break the law last month when they turned scores of people away from their quarterly public meeting? A top official within New York’s Department of State says maybe, and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer has expressed concerns to the head of the City’s Department of Health.

Protesters are accusing the city's shelter system, Animal Care and Control of New York City, of purposely shutting them out of a well-publicized public meeting on June 21st. According to an official at New York's Department of State, the following two questions must be answered:



“Could it have reasonably been anticipated whether the meeting room would accommodate the number of people who’d expressed interest in attending? And was there an alternative place the meeting could have been held to accommodate those interested in attending? If the answer to both of these questions is in the affirmative, then there was a failure to comply with New York’s Open Meetings Law,” Robert Freeman, executive director for the Committee on Open Government said in an exclusive interview with New York Tails Magazine. “If [AC&C] had no inkling as to how many people would be attending, they would have been in compliance with the law.”

The Committee on Open Government is a branch of New York’s Department of State. The Committee does not make legal rulings but does issue legal opinions in matters pertaining to freedom of information and the interpretation of the Open Meetings Law. Legal opinions issued by the Committee have been cited by judges when issuing a ruling about a case. One such case involved a NYS Supreme Court ruling against the Board of Trustees for the City University of New York (CUNY). In this 1998 ruling (Crain v. Reynolds) members of the CUNY board was prevented from implementing a resolution because it was made during a meeting held in a room which could not accommodate an anticipated influx of attendees.

The date and time of the AC&C’s June 21st quarterly meeting was widely publicized by many animal protection organizations for several weeks through several media platforms, from simple posters to elaborate Facebook petitions. There was particular emphasis placed on attendance of the June 21st meeting in light of several recent controversies, including the firing of several popular volunteers earlier this year. (See previous articles.)

However, many who showed up early with the intention of attending the meeting day—-most estimates place the number at well over 100 people, including representatives of the media—-were turned away. The overflow crowd was escorted from the building on 125 Worth Street, many holding protest signs, as they awaited news about the proceedings within.

The AC&C is a registered non-profit and not technically a city or state agency, however, almost 100 percent of its budget comes from New York’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DoH). Several AC&C board members hold high positions in City government, including Dr. Thomas Farley, Commissioner of the DoH, and Adrian Benepe, Commissioner of NYC’s Department of Parks and Recreation.

“It is our belief, since the AC&C carries out certain functions of the DoH, that it is under the control of a government organization,” Mr. Freeman said. “The board members could say the sky is green, but if it’s blue, it’s still blue.”

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer Expresses ‘Dismay’ Over June 21st Meeting Lock-Out
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer has also stepped into the debate. In a June 29th letter addressed directly to Dr. Farley, Mr. Stringer said he was "dismayed to learn that approximately 100 animal care advocates were turned away from the June 21st AC&C board meeting due to the limited capacity of the hearing room."

Mr. Stringer went on to write it was ‘crucial’ for the City to “maintain an open dialog between public officials and the animal care community”, particularly in light of "the City’s dire financial situation.”

Courtney Kistler, reporting for New York Tails Magazine, was among the members of the media who attempted to gain entrance to the June 21st meeting but was turned away. Her report on the experience, as well as comments from both attendees as well as representatives of Animal Care and Control will be posted here soon.

Link to Open Meetings Law – Department of State
http://www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/index.html

Department of State -- Committee on Open Government
One Commerce Plaza, 99 Washington Avenue, Suite 650, Albany, NY 12231
Telephone: (518) 474-2518 Fax : (518) 474-1927