Opinion
Opinion By: Gregory D. Stumbo, Attorney General; James M. Ringo, Assistant Attorney General
Open Meetings Decision
This matter having been presented to the Office of the Attorney General in an open meetings appeal, and the Attorney General being sufficiently advised, we find that the Bracken County EMS Board mooted the issue raised by Mary Ann Kearns, Managing Editor, The Ledger Independent in her February 7, 2007, appeal by acknowledging certain irregularities in the notice and conduct of the January 30, 2007, meeting and implementing corrective measures. Those measures consisted of acknowledging that the Board had posted a meeting notice that did not list the location of the meeting and referencing the meeting as a private meeting. Counsel for the Board advised that at the regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, February 13, 2007, the Board made a public statement of apology for the improper notice and meeting and declared the meeting, and all items pertaining thereto, null and void.
The Bracken County EMS Board does not contest its status as a public agency and has acknowledged its obligation to comply with the requirements of the Open Meetings Act, including KRS 61.823, relating to notice of special meetings. We find that 07-OMD-022, citing 98-OMD-119, 04-OMD-072, 05-OMD-188, and 06-OMD-170, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference, is controlling insofar as this decision and those cited therein hold that when a public agency concedes the open meetings error alleged, the issue upon which the appeal is based becomes moot. The Bracken County EMS Board having acknowledged its error and agreed to corrective measures, we find that the issue which forms the basis of Ms. Kearns' open meeting appeal is moot, and that no further analysis of this issue is warranted.
A party aggrieved by this decision may appeal it by initiating action in the appropriate circuit court pursuant to KRS 61.846(4)(a). The Attorney General should be notified of any action in circuit court, but should not be named as a party in that action or in any subsequent proceedings.