Algonquin Township (ECWd) -
Three members of the Algonquin Township Board held a meeting this evening, where one of the agenda items was to appoint a Temporary Deputy Supervisor since the elected supervisor's health necessitates his temporary absence.
With the resignation of one Trustee, and temporary vacancy of the Supervisor, that leaves three members of this Township's 5-member board to attend to meetings and vote on actions.
With a roll-call vote on the appointment of a temporary deputy supervisor, Trustee Lawrence voted "no" and Trustees Shae and Chapman voted "yes," with Trustee Shae declaring the appointment passed on a 2-1 vote. He is wrong.
According to the Open Meetings Act, Section 1.02, "for a 5-member body, 3 members of the body constitute a quorum and the affirmative vote of 3 members is necessary to adopt any motion, resolution, or ordinance, unless a greater number is otherwise required"
As it stands today, Algonquin Township must approve ALL motions, resolutions, or ordinances with a unanimous vote, unless and until either a Trustee is appointed, or the elected Supervisor Lutzow signs a sworn statement saying he is well enough to act as Supervisor again.
You would think, for the money they spend on Attorney James Kelly and his alleged vast experience in township laws, that he could at least advise them on how many votes it takes to pass a Motion or to make an Appointment as clearly explained in the Open Meetings Act.
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5 Comments
Dave
Posted at 21:51h, 19 JuneI am always shocked by some of the advice that comes from board attorneys. Why isn’t the OMA their first goto when issuing legal advice to boards concerning the lawful operation of boards??
Roger
Posted at 12:58h, 21 JuneThere are a lot of words in the Open Meetings Act. One has to take precaution when reading it. Read too much of it in one sitting may result in a severe case of lip cramp.
Michael Hagberg
Posted at 23:56h, 19 JuneYou’d think that the duties of supervisor could be temporarily appointed to one of the trustees.
jmkraft
Posted at 06:53h, 20 JuneCurrent state law prohibits it. JB has a bill on his desk that mandates it, but hasn’t signed it yet.
Cindy
Posted at 00:12h, 20 JuneDuh! Are these “attorneys” actually that stupid? Something says that they are doing this on purpose just like on the national scene. No one can be that obtuse.