It should be noted that Individual Votes taken during Closed Session are a matter of public record. Settlement agreements are also a matter of public record as well as credit card statements including individual credit card transactions when monies are spent using taxpayer dollars.
For more information on Missouri Sunshine Law regarding Closed Meetings see Missouri Sunshine Law Section 610.021.
The Rockwood School District posts Sunshine Requests submitted to their district on their website along with any documents that were provided from each Sunshine Request. I provided that information in an email sent last year. You can read about it in my article regarding Questions and Suggestions for the Fox C-6 School Board.
Transparency is very important in rebuilding the trust of the Fox C-6 community!
Sweeping things under the rug and hiding information from the public is what got the district into the huge mess that it's currently in. Let's not do that again going forward.
Sweeping things under the rug and hiding information from the public is what got the district into the huge mess that it's currently in. Let's not do that again going forward.
July 30, 2014 Sunshine Law Request
Mrs. Davis,
Please email me electronic (PDF) copies of the following documents per Missouri Sunshine Law. I also ask that the Fox C-6 school district waive any fees related to my request per Missouri Sunshine Law as this information is for public interest.
- A copy of the recent settlement agreement between Mrs. Dianne Critchlow and the Fox C-6 School District.
- A copy of the recent settlement agreement between Mr. Dan Baker and the Fox C-6 School District.
- A copy of the recent settlement agreement between Mrs. Angela Burns Baker and the Fox C-6 School District.
- Copies of all Credit Card statements listing the individual transactions for the 2013-2014 school year for the district's American Express, Sam's Club Discover card and the Card Services card that are listed in the monthly board meeting packets each month. Redacting of Credit Card account numbers to protect card information is expected.
- Copies of all school board meeting minutes including special meetings and workshops for the months of May, June and July. Please ensure that the individual votes that were taken during Closed Session are listed for each individual Fox C-6 school board member per Missouri Sunshine Law Section 610.021.
- Copies of the most recent employment contracts for all Central Office Administrators in the Fox C-6 School District.
Per Missouri Sunshine Law Section 610.021:
(1) Legal actions, causes of action or litigation involving a public governmental body and any confidential or privileged communications between a public governmental body or its representatives and its attorneys. However, any minutes, vote or settlement agreement relating to legal actions, causes of action or litigation involving a public governmental body or any agent or entity representing its interests or acting on its behalf or with its authority, including any insurance company acting on behalf of a public government body as its insured, shall be made public upon final disposition of the matter voted upon or upon the signing by the parties of the settlement agreement, unless, prior to final disposition, the settlement agreement is ordered closed by a court after a written finding that the adverse impact to a plaintiff or plaintiffs to the action clearly outweighs the public policy considerations of section 610.011, however, the amount of any moneys paid by, or on behalf of, the public governmental body shall be disclosed; provided, however, in matters involving the exercise of the power of eminent domain, the vote shall be announced or become public immediately following the action on the motion to authorize institution of such a legal action. Legal work product shall be considered a closed record;
(3) Hiring, firing, disciplining or promoting of particular employees by a public governmental body when personal information about the employee is discussed or recorded. However, any vote on a final decision, when taken by a public governmental body, to hire, fire, promote or discipline an employee of a public governmental body shall be made available with a record of how each member voted to the public within seventy-two hours of the close of the meeting where such action occurs; provided, however, that any employee so affected shall be entitled to prompt notice of such decision during the seventy-two-hour period before such decision is made available to the public. As used in this subdivision, the term "personal information" means information relating to the performance or merit of individual employees;
(22) Credit card numbers, personal identification numbers, digital certificates, physical and virtual keys, access codes or authorization codes that are used to protect the security of electronic transactions between a public governmental body and a person or entity doing business with a public governmental body. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to close the record of a person or entity using a credit card held in the name of a public governmental body or any record of a transaction made by a person using a credit card or other method of payment for which reimbursement is made by a public governmental body;
Thank you,
Rich Simpson
