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City of Enid urges board to deny continuance, says Open Records Act is not discovery
Summary
City attorneys told the Environmental Enforcement Board the Open Records Act does not provide discovery rights in an administrative enforcement hearing and that Midcontinent failed to show good cause for a continuance.
Kaylee Davis Matty, counsel for the City of Enid and its Public Utilities Department, asked the board to deny Midcontinent’s motion for continuance, arguing the company failed to meet the burden of showing good cause to disturb dates it previously requested and the Open Records Act is not a discovery tool for administrative hearings.
"The Open Records Act is not discovery," Matty said, adding that the board’s hearing process is governed by City of Enid procedures and not by Oklahoma civil discovery rules. Matty recited the procedural timeline, saying the notice of violation relating to the matter was filed roughly 335 days earlier and that the May upset underlying the NOV was 399 days earlier, and argued the city had prepared in reliance on the dates Midcontinent requested. She warned that even a short delay would prejudice the city, prolong the unresolved enforcement matter, and increase burdens on staff and ratepayers.
Matty told the board that although Midcontinent raised two core issues—the arbitration conflict and outstanding records—neither justified delay given the protracted timeline and the fact the dates were proposed by Midcontinent and relied on by city witnesses and staff. The city asked the board to proceed as scheduled.
