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Board questions legal citations in executive-session policy, seeks written opinion
Summary
During a second reading of an executive-session policy (BEC), board members challenged the policy's statutory citations, saying MSMA sample language appears to misstate Maine statute sections; the board agreed to request a written opinion from the policy author and to consider legal counsel before voting.
The board revisited the second reading of a revised executive-session policy (BEC) and engaged in detailed debate over its legal citations and wording. Board member (speaker 13) argued that an MSMA sample policy included in the draft misrepresents Maine statutory sections and urged the administration to state the exact statutory references rather than reproduce a summary that may be misleading.
The critic noted that the policy text references "section 401" and other aggregated citations that, in his reading, do not match the statutelanguage requiring specific subsection references for an executive session. The administration said the sample text was pulled directly from MSMA recommendations but agreed to seek clarification. The board directed administrators to ask the MSMA policy author (Charlotte Bates) for an opinion and to consult legal counsel if needed; members also suggested removing opinionated or advisory sentences from the policy language and keeping the policy strictly tied to statute.
No vote was taken on the policy during the meeting. The board agreed to return to the policy once the written guidance is obtained and the policy language is cleaned of nonstatutory commentary.
