Newspaper asks to see floodplain meeting minutes

JAY, Okla. (AP) _ A northeast Oklahoma newspaper is trying to get a county floodplain board to change its policy on where meeting records are stored. <br/><br/>The News-Record in Miami, Okla., has formally

Sunday, July 25th 2004, 10:22 am

By: News On 6

JAY, Okla. (AP) _ A northeast Oklahoma newspaper is trying to get a county floodplain board to change its policy on where meeting records are stored.

The News-Record in Miami, Okla., has formally requested the Delaware County Commission respond to allegations that the Delaware County Floodplain Board has violated the Oklahoma Open Meeting and Open Records acts

In September 2002, the floodplain board unanimously approved a motion to store records and minutes from its meetings in the office of the Delaware County Clerk. The action came after concerns that a previous administrator had been keeping board records at his home.

Two years later, the last minutes of any recorded meeting of the floodplain board filed in the county clerk's office are from an Oct. 17, 2002 meeting. The last agenda was filed on the same day.

At least one meeting occurred without minutes being filed and two other meetings were canceled.

Bruce Poindexter, the director of the flood plainboard and a Delaware County commissioner, said the records are being stored at the county barn.

``I'm not about to run down to Jay every time I get a piece of paper in the mail,'' Poindexter said.