Beaufort County, NC School Board - Why No Agenda Packets (Attachments)? | Eastern NC Now

Beaufort County, NC School Board - Why No Agenda Packets (Attachments)?

Ray Leary

Beaufort Observer Editorial Team

The Beaufort County, NC School Board (BCS) publishes its agenda for their board meetings three – four days prior to the scheduled meetings.  The agendas are published on the BCS website.  While informative, they are not complete.  There are no attachments available to the public.  The attachments are viewable by the board members as they have more access than the public, voters, and taxpayers, who do not.  Why is this?

The BCS Policy Code 2330 states the following in the second paragraph:

Each board member will receive a copy of the proposed agenda three days prior to the meeting, and the proposed agenda will be available for public inspection and/or distribution when it is distributed to the board members.

This is not entirely true.

The board members have detailed information on agenda items which are not available to the general public.  If the general public, voters and taxpayers, had access to the details, perhaps they would be informed sufficiently to contact their district’s board member to offer comments or questions.  They may even be inspired to attend the scheduled board meetings to observe or comment on the board’s collective and individual comments and actions.

The BCS Policy Code 2340 states the following:

To the extent not provided for in the following procedures and to the extent that the reference does not conflict with the spirit of these rules, the board shall refer to Suggested Rules of Procedure for Small Local Government Boards, by A. Fleming Bell, II, for unresolved procedural questions.

This reference has been updated and is now titled, Suggested Procedural Rules for Local Appointed Boards.  The Preface in this publication indicates it addresses changes in regulations, combines some items, and is applicable to appointed and elected boards.  The authors of this updated version are Trey Allen III, Associate Justice, NC Supreme Court and A. Flemming Bell, II.

Discussions of agendas for board meetings are on pages 34 and 35.

Section 5, Agendas, of this chapter states the following:

(5) Public Inspection

The draft agenda [and agenda packets, except for materials not subject to inspection or copying under the public records law,] shall be available to the public when [it is] [they are] ready to be circulated to members.

The Beaufort County Board of Commissioners publish agendas for their scheduled meetings.  The agenda packets are included.  Often, the agenda packets or attachments exceed 200 pages of information related to the listed agenda items which are less than two pages.  The public, voters, and taxpayers should expect no less from our elected school board members.  They can change this in two meetings.  They just need the support from their voters to do so.  Contact them!  Their phone numbers and email addresses are on the BCS website.