Senate: Interpretation of
guideline raises concern
about public disclosure
vsUi iui lucu iiuii I page i
included on the agenda notification
sent to the public and news media,
he said.
“If there is no mention of the exec
utive session in the public notice, the
notice is absolutely a violation of the
law,” he said.
Youm said the statute Andries re
ferred to is in place because execu
tive sessions are considered part of
regular meetings though they may
not be a regular occurrence.
He added that looking at executive
sessions as totally separate from reg
ular meetings is not how Oregon’s
Public Meetings Law should be inter
preted, adding that the Senate’s inter
pretation was “artful. ”
What is most important, Youm
said, is not whether the Senate vio
lated the law but whether the Senate
knowingly and willfully violated the
law. The argument that notification
for the executive session is not need
ed “might be more bona fide,” Youm
said, if it “has a lot to do with misun
derstanding or simple ignorance.”
Every senator contacted about the
executive sessions felt the Senate
was within the law by holding them.
Andries said he considers the public
notice requirement for executive ses
sions that aren’t the only part of the
meeting as “commentary” rather
than the actual statute itself.
“It says we should; it doesn’t
mean we have to,” he said “The
meeting wasn’t solely an executive
session meeting; it had both parts.”
Orchard said the law “is very to
the point” that advance notification
on any executive session is required.
There is no need for media outlets to
make a separate request for notifica
tion of executive session because
they are covered by the regular meet
ing notification requirement, he said.
There are circumstances in which
an executive session may be called
on a whim, but Orchard said those
circumstances are rare and definitely
not evident in this situation. The Sen
ate called the executive sessions to
discuss the merits of the candidates
for president, vice president, treasur
er and ombudsman before voting,
something Orchard said is not an
unanticipated activity.
“It’s hard for me to believe that the
election of officers within the ASUO
Senate is not a regularly, routinely
anticipated event that happens on
some kind of periodic basis,” Or
chard said, questioning why the elec
tion of officers was even something
that needed to be done in a closed
door session.
Youm said though the law does
not prohibit the discussion of the
merits of elected officials to take
place in an executive session,
whether a governing body decides to
do so can be a reflection of its open
ness to public scrutiny.
This is not the first time confusion
about the proper interpretation of
laws and guidelines has arisen in the
Senate. Summer-session senators
questioned whether they had the au
thority to pass issue resolutions with
out the title of full Senate.
Despite those concerns, the Senate
passed a resolution regarding the
Graduate Teaching Fellows Federa
tion’s ongoing contract negotiations
with the University on June 24. No
conclusion was ever reached in the
Senate as to the legitimacy of the res
olution.
The Senate has yet to conclude
whether the executive sessions held
on Oct. 6 and Oct. 13 were in viola
tion of law. Andries said he may be
wrong, but his interpretation of the
law says the sessions were legal.
meghanncuniff@ daily emerald, com
Tom Hicks has been the
interim director for the
Department of Public
Safety since April 2003.
Lauren Wimer
Senior photographer
Hicks: Director's duties must be defined
Continued from page 1
what type of action to take.
“There’s no point in beginning to
search until we’re clear in our own
minds exactly what the responsibili
ties will be of the director,”
Williams said. “My hesitancy in all
this has nothing to do with the per
formance of Tom Hicks or anybody
else in the department at all.”
Fourteen patrol officers, three ser
geants and one lieutenant comprise
the campus’s uniformed patrol,
which is supplemented by three
EPD officers and one EPD sergeant,
Hicks said. There are 38 employees
at DPS.
And with no associate director
appointed to cover the duties left by
Hicks’ appointment to interim direc
tor, the department’s three manag
ing sergeants have absorbed some
additional duties, Hicks said.
Parking and Transportation
Manager Rand Stamm said he has
n’t noticed much of an increase in
his responsibilities.
“We’ve always done business the
same way,” Stamm said. “When
something needs to get done,
we spread out the duties so it gets
done. We look on Tom as the
director. He’s done an excellent
job.”
karahansen@dailyemerald. com
Moore: Visit 'crucial' for reaching voters
Continued from page 1
“They are rightfully cynical, but this
year their motto will be: ‘Bush and
Kerry both suck — that’s why I’m vot
ing for John Kerry,”’ Moore said.
Catherine Matthys, contemporary
issues coordinator for the Cultural Fo
rum, said she was thrilled that people
will hear Moore’s message as the
Nov. 2 election nears.
“During one of the most politically
charged elections of the century, it’s
crucial for cultural icons like Michael
Moore to become involved with en
couraging young people to vote,”
Matthys said.
Shuttles will run to the event from
12th Avenue and Kincaid Street
every 10 minutes, between 10:30 a.m.
and 11:45 a.m., according
to www.michaelmoore.com. Immedi
ately after the event, shuttles will
depart from 13 th Avenue and
Monroe Street.
Tickets cost $5 and are available
through the University Ticket Office in
the EMU.
The Cultural Forum is a student
group that offers a variety of events in
music, fine art, performing arts, film
and contemporary issues throughout
the year.
Parker Howell
Economy: State seat candidates focus on education, small businesses
VAIIIIIIIUCU null I pdgtf 1
Washington that never comes back,”
Fitzgerald said. “We could use that to
solve the statewide budget and help
solve unemployment. We’re a builder
state and current politicians are bleed
ing us dry.”
Candidates for the state seats have
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also weighed in on the issue.
Floyd Prozanski, the Democratic
candidate for State Senate seat for Dis
trict 4, said the most important issues
in Oregon are to “keep jobs and to stop
shipping Oregon tax dollars. ”
“We need to take economic recov
ery money and invest it in small busi
nesses where it’s needed,” Prozanski
said. “The best way
to help Oregon is to develop existing
businesses and expand the
businesses already here. In rural
areas, we need to encourage
jobs, and we can do that by giving
tax credits for businesses
that are located in smaller
communities.”
His opponent, Republican Norm
Thomas, said there is a lot of money in
the state that could be reprioritized for
issues such as education and econom
ic recovery.
“We can still be ahead if we use
natural resources in a sustained man
ner,” he said. “If we did that, we’d
have education and jobs. I’m not talk
ing clear-cutting; I’m talking about cut
ting growth which we have the most of
in the states and use these resources.”
tonylucero@dailyemerald.com
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