Latest news with #ArkansasFreedomofInformationAct
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Judge rules City of Fort Smith violated Freedom of Information Act following failed hire
FORT SMITH, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — A Sebastian County judge has ruled that the City of Fort Smith and its acting city administrator violated the state's Freedom of Information Act. Fort Smith-based attorneys Joey McCutchen and Stephen Napurano filed the lawsuit against the city on May 2 after claiming Fort Smith failed to provide all public records related to the hiring of Rebecca Cowan as internal auditor. Cowan was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors on April 22, but the offer was rescinded after it was revealed she had a pending felony stalking charge. The City of Fort Smith told Talk Business & Politics, 'Human Resources produced the background check and relayed the information to Administration per City protocol.' Acting City Administrator Jeff Dingman, in an email to McCutchen, said, 'The background check information was delivered in hard copy. That record no longer exists. The Chief Human Resources Officer does not have a copy of the packet that was delivered. There is no hard copy.' An email from Dingman, not included in the city's FOIA response, was later obtained directly from a board member, according to the lawsuit. This email stated that Dingman 'did not believe a background check was performed.' The lawsuit also alleged the city failed to respond in a timely manner and may have withheld or destroyed public records. Fort Smith Boys & Girls Club awards $64K in 2025-26 college scholarships On June 3, the judge assigned to the lawsuit ruled in favor of McCutchen and Napurano during a hearing. An order, officially filed on June 5, said 'The Defendants' failure to timely respond, thefailure to provide clearly responsive records, the absence of any valid extension or waiver, and the troubling lack of transparency regarding the missing background check' were reasons as to why the city was ruled to have violated the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. A spokesperson from the City of Fort Smith gave the following statement to KNWA/FOX24 in response to the judge's ruling: 'While the City of Fort Smith provided all relevant documents in response to Mr. McCutchen's FOIA request, we did not meet the three-business-day deadline outlined in the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act and missed the deadline by two business days. The City remains committed to operating with transparency and integrity in all public records processes.' The ruling said the city will be responsible for paying attorney fees to McCutchen and Napurano. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arkansas Supreme Court sends AG's FOIA lawsuit against prison board back to circuit court
The Arkansas Supreme Court building in Little Rock. (John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate) The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday reversed a lower court's dismissal of the attorney general's lawsuit against the state prison board for violating the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. The ruling, written by Associate Justice Rhonda Wood for the six-member majority, sends the case back to Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox for adjudication. Attorney General Tim Griffin filed the lawsuit on Dec. 15, 2023, alleging the Arkansas Board of Corrections violated the FOIA when it entered executive session during a pair of public meetings and improperly hired an outside attorney. Griffin also said the board failed to properly respond to a public records request from his office. Arkansas attorney general to appeal rulings in Board of Corrections disputes Fox gave Griffin 30 days to work with the corrections board on an agreement with an outside attorney to represent it. Fox dismissed the case without prejudice in January 2024, ruling Griffin's office failed to make an effort to initiate the statutory procedure that allows special counsel to represent state officials and entities. Griffin moved to vacate the circuit court's order, arguing his office could not certify special counsel until the board asked for legal representation, according to Thursday's order from the state Supreme Court. The attorney general typically represents state entities, but according to Thursday's order, Griffin argued his duty to represent the state corrections board depended on the board certifying its need for legal representation. 'He is correct,' Wood wrote, noting that the attorney general has no duty to represent state agencies until a certified request for services is made. '[Griffin's appeal] argues that the circuit court dismissed the action for his failure to accomplish what he legally did not have sole authority to do,' the order states. 'In response, the Board contends the circuit court had authority to dismiss the action under Arkansas Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b). Because we find the circuit court abused its discretion, we reverse and remand.' Special Justice Bud Cummins joined the decision, while Associate Justice Nicholas Bronni did not participate. The governor appointed Cummins, a former U.S. attorney, to replace Bronni, who recused himself from the case in January. Bronni served as the state's solicitor general in Griffin's office before Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders appointed him to the high court in December. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Associate Justice Shawn Womack dissented. In his dissent, Womack writes that even though the circuit court was right to dismiss Griffin's lawsuit, the dismissal should have been with prejudice and because of sovereign immunity, a legal doctrine that the state cannot be sued in its own courts. The case should be reversed and dismissed, said Womack, who regularly cites sovereign immunity in court decisions. 'Obviously, in most situations when the State brings a lawsuit, sovereign immunity is not implicated because the lawsuit does not make the State a defendant,' he wrote. 'But in those rare instances when the State is both the plaintiff and the defendant—as it is here—sovereign immunity applies, and the underlying lawsuit is barred.' In a social media post, Griffin praised the high court's decision, which allows his suit to continue. 'I sued the Board of Corrections to defend our Freedom of Information Act. I am thankful for today's Arkansas Supreme Court decision, which will allow that lawsuit to go forward,' Griffin wrote. 'I take defending the FOIA seriously, and I will not tolerate those who violate it.' The lawsuit is part of a dispute between the corrections board and the executive branch that started in late 2023 over who has ultimate authority over the state's prison system. The board's refusal in November 2024 to approve a request to increase prison capacity by 500 beds prompted public criticism from Griffin and Sanders. The board responded by hiring an outside attorney the following month to represent it in employment matters. The board voted 3-2 to hire Abtin Mehdizadegan, a labor and employment lawyer with the Little Rock firm of Hall Booth Smith. The vote came with almost no discussion after a 45-minute closed-door session. Griffin quickly questioned the board's authority to hire outside counsel without obtaining his office's consent, citing state law that says the attorney general's office represents state officials and entities. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signs 55 bills into law on Thursday
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed 55 bills into law on Thursday. Bills included those covering the Freedom of Information Act, nuclear energy and religious protection. Four takeaways from the 12th week of the 95th General Assembly FOIA Senate Bill 227, now Act 505, amends the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act to accommodate modern requirements, such as meetings using video calls. The bill received broad support in both chambers. NUCLEAR House Concurrent Resolution 1009 was signed into law, allowing the state to apply for federal funding for the next phase of a nuclear power study. The study is to determine if spent nuclear fuel rods can be reused for power or recycled. RELIGIOUS PROTECTION , provides that people cannot be discriminated against in adoption and foster care because of their religious beliefs. As the law goes into effect, no agency can compel a faith-based adoption or foster care group to act in a way that would violate their religious beliefs. Other bills signed into law also included a number providing funding for various state agencies. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee sworn in as ambassador to Israel With this latest round of signatures, the governor has signed 552 bills into law since the start of the 95th General Assembly. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
FOIA bill heads to Arkansas governor's desk
Sen. Clarke Tucker, D-Little Rock, questions a bill that would abolish the State Library Board and the Educational Television Commission. Photographed Feb. 13, 2025. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate) A bill that clarifies aspects of Arkansas' public meetings law is heading to the governor's desk after it again passed the Senate by a wide margin on Monday. The bill specifies what members of city councils, quorum courts or school boards could discuss outside of a public meeting and would also allow a court to nullify any decisions made by a public body if it was in violation of open meetings laws. Senate Bill 227, sponsored by Sen. Clarke Tucker, D-Little Rock, had already passed the Senate once, but the addition of co-sponsors when it was being considered in the House required another vote by the upper chamber. Senators voted 34-1 in favor of passage; more senators voted yes in the second vote, including Sen. Alan Clark, who voted against Tucker's bill when it first passed the Senate last month. Clark introduced his own amendments to the state's Freedom of Information Act that would have defined a public meeting as 'more than two' members of a public body – a change from the current status quo. That bill, Senate Bill 376, has been waiting to be heard in the House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs committee, and Clark voted against Tucker's bill the first time it went before the chamber. Only Sen. John Payton, R-Wilburn, voted no during Monday's vote. The current FOIA does not define the number of people needed for a meeting to qualify as public, but has generally been interpreted to mean a meeting where at least two members of a governing body get together. Tucker's bill, if signed into law, would make that more explicit. Tucker's bill has support from FOIA advocates around the state. The president of the Arkansas Press Association, Andrew Bagley, called Tucker's bill 'a very good piece of legislation' during a committee meeting March 12. The Arkansas Freedom of Information Act gives Arkansans broad access to public records, such as emails sent between state officials and documents used in the course of government action. The law also establishes access to public meetings by members of the public, although the vague language governing this access has led to multiple instances of litigation as local governments ran afoul of the sunshine provisions. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
No matter what, open meetings proposals will shine light on decision-makers during Sunshine Week
Credit: Don Landgren via Sunshine Week Toolkit A House panel unanimously approved a bill Wednesday that should delight two groups who've battled for years over what constitutes a public meeting for governing bodies. The House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee recommended passage of Senate Bill 227 by Sen. Clarke Tucker, a Democrat from Little Rock. The legislation next moves to the House floor, its last stop before the governor's desk — if approved by representatives Thursday. Fittingly, the action occurred in the middle of the 20th anniversary of Sunshine Week, an annual observance that highlights the importance of your right to know what public officials do in your name. Sunshine Week takes on added significance during Arkansas legislative sessions because some lawmakers spend a lot of their time trying to weaken the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, a 1967 law that guarantees citizens the right to observe government entities deliberate and act on matters of public importance, as well as the right to examine government documents. In other words, the FOIA lets the light of public scrutiny shine on government officials and public records to the betterment of the state. Tucker said in an earlier legislative hearing that he spent two years working on the bill's language, getting staunch public-access purists like Jimmie Cavin of Conway and Fort Smith attorney Joey McCutchen along with local government and school board officials to agree on a proposal that, in McCutchen's words Wednesday, gives citizens and officials a 'bright-line test' to determine whether a gathering is a meeting that should follow the FOIA's requirements for a public meeting. 'I think if you can bring Jimmie Cavin and Joey McCutchen and the Municipal League and the Association of Counties together, you probably deserve a Nobel Peace prize,' State Agencies Chairman Jimmy Gazaway, R-Paragould, told Tucker. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The feel-good vibe may be short-lived, however, because another bill defining a public meeting is making its way through the lawmaking process. That bill is opposed by McCutchen, Cavin and the Arkansas Press Association, among others. Senate Bill 376 by Republican Sen. Alan Clark of Lonsdale is on the Senate floor Thursday. It defines a public meeting as a gathering of two or more members of a governing body. When a Senate committee discussed both Clark's and Tucker's bills, Clark said his bill 'better defines Sen. Tucker's bill.' But McCutchen and others said SB 376 would allow 'serial meetings,' or polling. Tucker noted that two members of a city council, for example, could subvert the FOIA's intent by having one-to-one discussions until all members, or at least a majority, agreed on which way to vote on an issue — all behind closed doors and beyond the public's view. Clark amended his bill after that committee discussion to prohibit two members who discuss a matter their governing body might take up 'from disclosing the opinion or position of another member on the matter with other members of the governing body.' Whether that addition is enough to get a majority of senators to move Clark's bill forward remains to be seen. For now, Tucker's more nuanced but better received legislation is headed for final approval ahead of Clark's proposal. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
