Hoffman Estates board may release closed-door minutes

Hoffman Estates trustees are discussing the release of closed-door meeting minutes to the public.

Village officials say the public shouldn't expect any bombshells when the minutes are released, as officials are just trying to make sure they're up to code. The board could vote Monday to release minutes from sessions from 2004 to 2007.

"I think it just goes with the spirit of good open government," Mayor William McLeod said.

The Illinois Open Meetings Act requires municipalities to review and release non-sensitive meeting minutes twice yearly for sessions closed to the public. There are 23 topics -- including litigation and personnel issues -- that can legally be discussed in private.

In 2005, the Cook County state's attorney's office looked into allegations that Hoffman Estates trustees broke the law by discussing issues in closed session that weren't allowed by the Open Meetings Act. Called into question were discussions related to negotiations to build the Sears Centre arena.

Then-Village Attorney Richard Williams said trustees were allowed to talk about the arena because of pending litigation surrounding the property.

Also, there are some topics that might not be sensitive anymore and can now be released, new Village Attorney Art Janura said.

Village officials say they've been adhering to the law, but Janura said past boards might not have released some information they should have. He hopes the village will develop a new, organized way to archive and release the minutes.

Trustees will eventually look over minutes from years prior to 2004.

"They'll be interesting if you're a historian," Janura said.

McLeod said the time was right to release the information, with the installation of Janura as village attorney. He was appointed to the post in September after the retirement of Williams, who served Hoffman Estates for 34 years.

Illinois Press Association spokeswoman Beth Bennett lauded the action, saying the it's a sign of good government. The IPA is a newspaper lobby group whose members include the Daily Herald.

Bennett said under state law, municipalities are supposed to examine all of their closed session minutes, which could span decades. But, realistically, that's not feasible, so any step toward releasing information to the public is a positive, she said.

The law was enacted more than 50 years ago, and in 2004 it was amended to require closed sessions to be audio-taped. Bennett said the law has been amended so many times, many municipalities aren't sure if they're properly following the law.