Faroo News Release = Contact: Erik Johnson, city Attorney Phone: ejohnson@lawfargo.com Response to open meeting challenge regarding Chief Ternes matter FARGO, N.D. (March 20, 2015) — The North Dakota Attomey General recently released his opinion stating that the Fargo City Commission failed to comply with North Dakota open meeting requirements. This opinion refers to the events leading up to an agreement between the city and Fargo Police Chief Keith Ternes providing terms for his retirement and resignation in November, 2014. The Attomey General said that a series of conversations that included various members of the city commission at different times over the course of several days constituted an open meeting violation. He also said that a normally permissible reason for a confidential executive session, to allow a city commission to discuss negotiations on a contract, did not qualify in this instance. This is because Chief Temes had participated in the discussions as to the amounts involved and, thus, private discussion of the terms of the retirement settlement would not have any “negative fiscal impact” on the city. The Attomey General said that the city's notice of its November 10" special city commission meeting was insufficient in that it did not refer to the executive session and the notice wasn't properly posted at city hall. The city will comply with the Attomey General's letter immediately by disclosing the commissioner's statements regarding the conversations and the recording of the executive session. Fargo Mayor Timothy Mahoney said, “City staff always try to comply with North Dakota's open meeting requirements and | apologize on behalf of the city for this mistake. Moving forward, we will educate commissioners about these procedures and ensure we are in compliance.” According to City Attomey Erik Johnson, “This was a situation where the police morale review committee was attempting to protect from harm the police department employees who volunteered to speak candidly about the morale in the department. Also, Deputy Mayor Mahoney was helping with administrative matters while Mayor Walaker was yet unable to retum to work from his cancer treatment, the magnitude of the problems at the Police Department were coming to light and the matter was crying out for resolution. As a result, inquiry was made of Police Chief Temes about the possibility of resignation as a means of allowing the department to “move on” and make needed changes. That inquiry quickly resulted in certain retirement terms being negotiated and proposed by Temes that required approval from the City Commission. Johnson said, “What we have leamed is that as this situation was unfolding, we should have stopped and convened a meeting with the entire City Commission to inform them and the public as to what was happening. In addition, at some point earlier in the discussions and resulting negotiations with Chief Temes, we could quite properly have held executive sessions to discuss the financial impacts of the negotiations. The Attorney General has also reminded us that while itis usually just fine for one commissioner to speak with another, when a series of conversations intended to be ministerial matters and information-providing rises to the level of support building and consensus, then we should stop and convene a public meeting.” The Attomey General identified a third violation in that when the City sent out the required notice on Sunday evening, before the intended 7:00 a.m. special city commission meeting, the notice failed to mention the expected executive session. And, the city failed to post the notice at City Hall in advance of the 7:00 a.m meeting. As to these items, Johnson said that as soon as this concer came to our attention after the November 10" meeting the city staff took immediate steps with the staff members involved in issuing meeting notices to make sure the notices contain the proper items and that the notices are properly posted as well. - END -