City attorney briefs North St. Paul council on open-meeting, data-practice and conflict rules

City attorney Jack Brooksbank of the law firm Campbell Knutson told Mayor Monge and council members at a Jan. 7 workshop that public decisions and the underlying government data must generally be handled in public and on official channels.

Brooksbank said the Open Meeting Law defines a “meeting” broadly and that any quorum — three council members — discussing city business in a way that furthers a decision can trigger noticing requirements. He told the council, “public decisions should be made in public,” and warned that serial communications (for example, one council member emailing another and that second member emailing a third) can amount to an unnoted meeting.

The attorney said the Data Practices Act likewise treats government records broadly: emails or text messages about city business, even when sent from personal devices, can be public records subject to disclosure. “If it is an official email, assume that it will be read by the entire public,” Brooksbank said, and recommended using official city email for city business and forwarding any citizen messages received on a personal account to an official address.

Why this matters: Open-meeting and data-practices rules determine how council members may deliberate, where the public can observe decision-making and what records may be subject to disclosure. Brooksbank emphasized practical steps to avoid inadvertent violations and to preserve confidentiality when the law allows it.

Details from the session included:

- Quorum and notice: A quorum (three council members) discussing city business generally creates a meeting that must be publicly noticed. The city’s regular council meeting dates (first and third Tuesdays) are posted; special meetings need separate notice, typically posted at least three days in advance.

- Serial communications and social settings: Brooksbank said incidental social contact is not automatically a violation, but cautioned that even casual follow-ups about council business can create an unintended meeting. He urged council members to coordinate with the city attorney’s office if multiple members plan to attend the same public event so staff can post a notice if required.

- Closed meetings: The attorney outlined closed‑meeting exceptions, including labor negotiations, pending litigation, real-estate bargaining and certain attorney‑client privileged discussions. He said many closed meetings must be recorded and later released when confidentiality no longer applies, but attorney‑client privileged discussions may remain confidential.

- Penalties: Brooksbank said intentional violations can carry civil penalties (he cited amounts up to $300 per occurrence as discussed in the workshop) and that repeated intentional violations could lead to removal from office under state law.

- Data Practices Act: Government data is broadly defined; records created, received or maintained by the city about official business are presumptively public unless a statutory exception applies. Brooksbank described personnel data and certain law‑enforcement records as examples of categories that may be restricted.

- Conflicts of interest and gifts: The attorney reviewed common‑sense standards and the requirement to disclose potential financial interests. He said abstaining without formal disclosure and council action is generally not sufficient when a council member has an interest; in many cases the member should step out and the remaining council determine how to proceed. On gifts, Brooksbank said the rule is broad — things of value can create questions of influence — and gave the workshop a best‑practice threshold for nominal items, noting the city must accept larger gifts by a two‑thirds council vote and that city departments cannot accept gifts directly (gifts must be routed to and accepted by the city).

Brooksbank closed by encouraging council members to raise questions as they arise: “If you ever have any specific questions … reach out to our office, send me an email, give me a phone call,” he said.

The workshop included several clarifying questions from council members about how the rules apply in social situations and about the process for getting items on meeting agendas. Brooksbank noted that North St. Paul does not currently have a formal rule governing how items are added to the agenda and that the council may adopt one if it wishes; otherwise staff and the mayor generally add items so long as agenda space exists.

Ending: Council members were advised to use official email for city business, coordinate with staff when attending events where multiple members may appear, and contact the city attorney’s office for guidance on specific conflicts or disclosure issues.