Monroe District Representative - King George School Board

The King George Journal recently posited that the School Board was acting improperly by having one of the members participate by teleconference.

 

The King George Journal

 

Dear Editor,

 

     Your front page article of January 30 states that the “King George School Board failed to meet strict requirements in the state law at the start of the meeting” involving teleconference participation of board member Mr. Paulsen.  I strongly disagree.

I’ll let the reader decide by citing the law verbatim and then describing what happened.

     Here is what is written in the statute (2.2-3708.1).

     “A.  A member of a public body may participate in a meeting governed by this chapter through electronic communication means from a remote location that is not open to the public only as follows and subject to the requirements of subsection B:”

     (A.1 – not applicable to this case.)

     “A.2. If a member of a public body notifies the chair of the public body that such member is unable to attend a meeting due to a temporary or permanent disability or other medical condition that prevents the member’s physical attendance and the public body records this fact and the remote location from which the member participated in its minutes; or”

     (The ‘or’ at the end refers to A.3, which is not applicable to this case.)

     “B. Participation by a member of a public body as authorized under subsection A shall be only under the following conditions:

1.  A quorum of the public body is physically assembled at the primary or central meeting location; and

2. The public body makes arrangements for the voice of the remote participant to be heard by all persons at the primary or central meeting location.”

     The full text of the statute can be found at: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+2.2-3708.1.

     Mr. Paulsen had informed himself and the Vice Chairman that he had a temporary medical condition preventing his presence.  He had informed me about two weeks ago that he would most likely have a temporary medical condition that would make him unable to attend in person.  There was a quorum of other members at the meeting.  Mr. Paulsen could be clearly heard on the speakerphone, and we tested before the meeting that he could hear the participants in the meeting room.  As a board member, I will, as I am sure the others will, ensure that the official minutes of the meeting reflect that Mr. Paulsen was participating via teleconference from his residence.  I was certainly satisfied that it was Mr. Paulsen on the phone, and believe other board members were so convinced.  So, in other words, the law was followed.

     What your article fails to point out is that, putting aside the impropriety of a news reporter interrupting an official meeting, as I recall, the reporter initially made reference to section A.1 of the statute (which says that a member can notify the chair on the day of a meeting that he is unable to attend, at which point the board must approve the participation by vote and record specifics of the emergency).

     Your story is an interesting example of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle applied to news reporting.  (The principal states that disturbing something you are observing changes it to be something that it would otherwise not be).  In this case, reporting the facts could have left the reader to judge the actions of the School Board.  Instead, your reportorial actions and writing leave the reader with a false impression.

     The sad thing is this.  Mr. Paulsen, in particular, and the board should be commended for achieving full board participation in a vital working session for one of the most important board issues: development of the budget.  I have personal experience with Mr. Paulsen’s medical condition, and laud him for participating as he did.  Teleconferencing is an accepted, common, and important tool for government and business – which is why the law was recently changed to allow local governments and boards to use it to improve board member participation.  The community is ill-served by the distractions that this kind of article creates.

     I am committed to open, legal school board participation.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me at the following personal email address, kgsboardpk@msn.com, or to visit my new “Blog” with information about my view of school issues and my views on what is reported locally about the school board. (http://kgschoolboardmonroerep.spaces.live.com/).

     Please remember these are my personal views, and do not reflect an official position of the King George County School Board.

 

 

 

Payne Kilbourn

 

 

 

The School Board is reviewing the budget for the next fiscal year, which runs from 1 July 2008 to 30 June 2009, and is abbreviated FY09.