FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Michael Tupman, Deputy Attorney General

Phone: (302) 739-7641

Date: August 28, 2002

 

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT COMPLAINT

AGAINST JOINT SCHOOL BOARDS OF

NEW CASTLE COUNTY RESOLVED

Joint Board determined to be a "public body" for purposes of FOIA

 

(Dover, DE): Attorney General M. Jane Brady announced that her office has issued an opinion which determines that the Joint School Board of New Castle County constitutes a public body for purposes of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and therefore is subject to all of the requirements of the open meeting laws.

The Attorney General's Opinion is in response to a complaint received from James Parks, a resident in the Brandywine School District, alleging that a Joint Board, comprised of representatives of the six school districts in northern New Castle County (Appoquinimink, Brandywine, Christina, Colonial, Red Clay and New Castle Vocational-Technical), was holding monthly meetings in violation of the Freedom of Information Act.

After a thorough review of relevant statutes, case law, Attorney General's opinions and court decisions in other states, the Department of Justice determined that the Joint Board is a "public body" for the purposes of FOIA based on the following criteria:

    1. The Joint Board was established by the individual school boards.
    2. The Joint Board performs functions traditionally associated with school districts.
    3. While the Joint Board does not have the authority to make binding decisions on the individual school districts, board members and school administrators who attended the Joint Board meetings reported back to the individual school boards which then sometimes took formal action.
    4. The Joint Board receives public funds.
    5. The Joint Board is completely controlled by the individual school boards which make up its members.
    6. The members of the Joint Board are all government officials or government employees.

The opinion concludes, "the Joint Board is a 'public body' for purposes of

FOIA and subject to all of the requirements of the open meeting laws. We direct each of the participating school boards to notice these meetings to the public in the future in the same manner as they would a meeting of the individual school board under FOIA and to maintain minutes of the joint meetings."