One-party delegations use loophole to evade Maryland open meeting law

The Prince George's County delegation in the House of Delegates will not meet Friday, but the Democratic caucus of that delegation will.

The membership of the delegation and the caucus are precisely the same. The difference is that where delegation meetings are generally open to the public, party caucus meetings are not.

Caucus meetings in counties with single-party delegations are a popular way for Maryland lawmakers to hash out local issues free from the prying eyes of the public. But the practice, defended by delegation members, raises red flags among advocates of open government.

"We're very concerned any time they use a loophole in the Open Meetings Act to avoid transparency," said Jennifer Bevan-Dangel, executive director of Common Cause Maryland.

It's a loophole that's available to only a few delegations. Most of Maryland's larger jurisdictions, such as Baltimore and Anne Arundel counties, have delegations that include Democrats and Republicans.

But Baltimore City, along with Prince George's, Montgomery and Charles counties, have all-Democratic delegations. Carroll County and some of Maryland's rural counties are all Republicans...

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/blog/bal-one-party-delegations-use-caucus-dodge-to-evade-open-meetings-20160324-story.html