PARIS – A Paris Board of Selectmen meeting Monday carried an air of mystery as the board went into executive session without a clear explanation for its actions.
Partway through a regular meeting, the selectmen voted 5-0 to go behind closed doors to discuss “attorney-client consultations.”
When asked why consultations were being held, only Town Manager Sharon Jackson responded. She declined to state the reason, saying the board had correctly cited Maine law as directed by her agenda.
“I worded it exactly the way the counsel told me to word it,” she said of the motion to enter into executive session. Jackson said she sought advice on the matter from a Maine Municipal Association attorney.
According to the Maine Freedom of Access law, “A motion to go into executive session must indicate the precise nature of the business of the executive session.” It also must include a reference to the exact section of the law that permits the session.
In an online bulletin, the association discusses how a board should enter into a closed session. The bulletin contains an example of a proper motion: “I move that the board go into executive session pursuant to 1 M.R.S.A., 405(6)(A) to discuss the appointment of a new town manager.'”
The numbers listed above refer to the section of the law that allows an executive session to discuss “personnel matters.” The statement about the town manager position lets the public know the “precise nature” of the board’s business.
A resident who asked about the board’s reason for the executive session was told the law had been cited, and left the room with a handful of others. The board did not resume its regular meeting until almost 8:15 p.m., leaving residents waiting more than an hour to hear discussion on the remaining public items on the agenda.
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