Nevada Regents Settle Dispute Over Their Alleged Violation of State’s Open-Meeting Law

The Board of Regents of Nevada’s public-college system voted on Friday to drop its appeal of a court ruling that said the board had violated the state’s open-meeting law last year, according to news reports.

In a settlement with the state attorney general’s office, the board of the University and Community College System of Nevada did not admit it had broken the law, but it agreed to obey the law and to provide information about its meeting agendas upon request from the public.

“I think we have done a very bad job of making the public feel very comfortable with what goes on here,” James E. Rogers, the system’s interim chancellor, told The Reno Gazette-Journal. “The public at large, I think, does not trust the community-college and university system. Things have got to get better if we’re going to get into the education business.”

In November, a state judge ruled that the regents had violated the open-meeting law when they decided, in a closed-door session, to demote the president of the Community College of Southern Nevada and the college’s lobbyist. The regents recently settled lawsuits filed by those two officials over their demotions.

In July, the state attorney general’s office accused the regents of having violated the law again in May, when the university system’s chief lawyer refused to release a proposed contract for Mr. Rogers before he was hired.

Under the settlement, the attorney general’s office has agreed not to investigate the matter further.

Background articles from The Chronicle:

• Nevada System and College’s Former President Reach Settlement, Clearing Way for New Leader (8/18/2004)
• 2 Officials Reinstated at Nevada College (6/25/2004)
• Red-Faced in the Desert (2/27/2004)
• Nevada Regents Broke Open-Meetings Law (2/6/2004)