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Council votes to enter nonpublic personnel session and to seal the minutes indefinitely
Summary
On Aug. 19 the Rochester City Council voted to go into a nonpublic session under RSA 91-A and later voted to seal the minutes indefinitely, citing personnel confidentiality; roll-call votes were recorded in the transcript and motions passed.
The Rochester City Council voted on Aug. 19, 2025, to enter a nonpublic session citing RSA 91-A (personnel) and later voted to seal the minutes of that nonpublic session indefinitely.
At the start of the nonpublic motion, a councilor moved that the council go into nonpublic session "personal, RSA 91 a 3. Section 2 a," and another councilor seconded; the council took a roll-call vote with all present councilors recorded as voting "Yes." The mayor announced, "Motion passes. We'll be coming back out." The transcript records roll-call confirmations from councilors including Councilor Dejaafuis, Councilor Fitzpatrick, Councilor Sullivan, Councilor Horne (reported not present during one roll call), Councilor Walker, Councilor Herman, Councilor Fontenot, Councilor Credo, Councilor Richardson, Deputy Mayor Hammond, Councilor Carolyan and Mayor Callahan.
After the nonpublic session the council reconvened in public, and a motion was made to seal the nonpublic minutes indefinitely with the stated reason that revealing the minutes would compromise personnel matters. The motion to seal was seconded and passed on roll call; the mayor announced, "Motion carries."
Why this matters: Under New Hampshire's right-to-know law, RSA 91-A, councils may enter nonpublic sessions for specified reasons such as personnel matters. Sealing minutes indefinitely removes the record from public disclosure and limits transparency; the council's actions and roll call votes are recorded in the transcript.
What the record shows: The transcript contains the roll-call votes and the mayor—s announcement that motions passed; it does not contain the substance of the nonpublic discussion because that portion was held in nonpublic session.
