Date: Thu 15-Jan-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: ANDYG

Quick Words:

HVCEO-Rosenthal-FOI-Lysaght

Full Text:

Rosenthal Takes Aim At The FOI Law

BY ANDREW GOROSKO

Unhappy with the state Freedom of Information (FOI) Act's requirement that job

performance evaluations of public employees be made public when requested,

First Selectman Herbert Rosenthal has asked area legislators to place limits

on the disclosure of such data.

Mr Rosenthal expressed opposition to the FOI act's provisions at a January 8

session of the Housatonic Valley Council of Elected Officials (HVCEO). HVCEO

convened the New Milford meeting so its members could give state legislators

from the area advice on changes needed in state laws.

Mr Rosenthal pointed to the public disclosure last fall of the job evaluation

of Newtown Police Chief James E. Lysaght, Jr, as an example of a job

evaluation that became public and undermined the chief's authority and

credibility as a leader.

In the job review, the Police Commission was highly critical Chief Lysaght's

job performance. It concluded that unless the chief's job performance improves

to a satisfactory level and that unless he meets the goals he has agreed to

with the Police Commission, the commission believes it will have just cause to

fire him. The commission is slated to again evaluate the chief's job

performance in March.

The Newtown Police Union sought and received copies of the chief's job review

through the first selectman's office under the provisions of the FOI Act.

"Chief Lysaght has failed to carry out the directives of the Board of Police

Commissioners on several occasions. The chief has failed to provide the

planning and leadership necessary to implement the board's directives and

department policy," Police Commission members noted in the evaluation dated

last September 1.

In response to the evaluation, Chief Lysaght said last fall, "I was

disappointed in the job evaluation, but the commission has given me goals for

the next year, and I'll do the utmost to achieve those goals."

Mr Rosenthal's Comments

At the January 8 HVCEO session, Mr Rosenthal said, "I believe the FOI

Commission, as a whole, has run amok." The commission seems to constantly

expand its sphere of influence, the first selectman observed.

State FOI Commission members think all governmental information should be

public information, he said.

The public is not best served by such a situation, Mr Rosenthal argued. Such

openness does not result in the best decisions being made by public officials,

he said.

Also, the FOI law is used by lawyers seeking to obtain labor-related

information that is unavailable to them by other means, the first selectman

said. Mr Rosenthal noted that some attorneys file frivolous FOI complaints

against government agencies simply to annoy and vex public officials.

"I think this [FOI] commission is a group on a search for a mission," the

first selectman said.

When town representatives appear before the FOI Commission on a FOI complaint

against the town, they are treated as if they are criminals, Mr Rosenthal

said, adding that sense is compounded when a town is represented by a lawyer.

People who lodge FOI complaints against municipalities typically are not

represented by lawyers.

The abuse and harassment to which town officials are subjected when involved

in FOI complaints stems from the FOI law's structure, the first selectman

said. In calling for changes to the FOI law, Mr Rosenthal said he believes

"the pendulum has swung too far."

"Too much information is considered public information by the FOI Commission,"

the first selectman said.

Ridgefield First Selectman Abraham Morelli agreed with Mr Rosenthal, saying

too much governmental information is subject to public disclosure, adding the

FOI Commission needs to be reined in.

State Rep Julia Wasserman asked Mr Morelli to place his concerns about the FOI

law in writing and submit them to the legislature's Program Review and

Investigations Committee for consideration. Mrs Wasserman is chairman of that

committee.

New Milford Mayor Arthur Peitler said he has found the FOI Commission to be a

very cooperative agency

Mr Peitler agreed with Mr Rosenthal, though, in that it is distressing that

lawyers can obtain certain labor-related information through the FOI process

that they cannot obtain otherwise.

State Rep Scott Santa-Maria said that in its last session the legislature

changed the FOI law to make it more difficult to obtain certain types of

information. Mr Santa-Maria noted, though, that it was difficult to make those

legislative changes in light of opposition from the press.

New Fairfield First Selectman Patricia Gay said it can be frustrating when

town officials call the FOI Commission for advice on how to handle a

particular situation and FOI representatives say town officials should follow

the course they personally consider correct.

Mr Rosenthal said that when he was chairman of the Newtown Board of Education,

the board received requests for job evaluations of School Superintendent John

Reed. Those requests were from people who had gripes with Mr Reed, Mr

Rosenthal said. The evaluations showed Mr Reed was doing a good job, Mr

Rosenthal added.

Mr Rosenthal said he does not know what specific FOI changes should be made to

limit public disclosure of information, but added the current situation is not

a good situation.

Mr Rosenthal acknowledged there is a need for government officials to maintain

documents on the job performance of employees. However, disclosing such

documents, which may include criticisms of employees' performance in order to

improve their performance, may have the opposite effect of undermining those

employees' ability to function effectively, he said.

Observations

"I'm a person who supports the public's right to know... but there are certain

areas [of disclosure] that make it difficult to manage" a government, Mr

Rosenthal said Monday.

When "personnel" issues enter the public sphere, it becomes a difficult

situation for employees, he said.

Mr Rosenthal said he has no problem with the FOI law's provisions being

applied to elected officials versus public employees.

In the case of a chief of police, "You have to have the respect of the people

who work for you," Mr Rosenthal said.

After the Police Commission performed the job evaluation on Chief Lysaght, the

police union promptly obtained the evaluation through the first selectman's

office. The union also obtained the Police Commission's job objectives for

Chief Lysaght. Those objectives were included in a document attached to the

job evaluation.

Having the list of job objectives makes it easier for an employee's opponents

to create problems for the employee, Mr Rosenthal said.

The first selectman said he doesn't know how to resolve the conflict between

protecting the public's right to know and the interests of a public employee.