University Faculty Senate President Kevin Cope accused the LSU System this week of violating the Louisiana open meetings law when the Board of Supervisors “unexpectedly” voted to consolidate the chancellor and system president positions at its Oct. 26 meeting.
Cope sent a letter to Attorney General James “Buddy” Caldwell, asking him to investigate the Board’s decision. Caldwell’s secretary said Wednesday the office is reviewing the accusation.
Louisiana open meetings law requires public notification of a meeting and a meeting agenda to be posted for the public no less than 24 hours prior to the meeting.
“A decision like that is a significant item,” Cope said Wednesday.
Cope said he’s never seen an item from the “Chairman’s Report” voted on, and the resolution should have stood on its own in the “Consent Agenda Items” where every other initiative is listed and voted on.
The Board simultaneously voted in the meeting, though it had to have previously considered the vote prior to the meeting, Cope said.
The Board voted to consolidate the positions at the end of the regular board meeting. The item, considered a report by the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, was listed under the “Chairman’s Report” on the agenda.
The Board of Supervisors discussed the AGB report — detailing numerous structural changes to the LSU System — at the meeting before Board member Blake Chatelain pushed to vote on the portion involving the consolidation of chancellor and system president.
“LSU System General Counsel, Shelby McKenzie, read ‘on cue’ a carefully prepared version of the resolution,” Cope wrote in his letter to Caldwell. “The ready availability of a professionally written resolution indicates that discussions pertaining to this resolution must also have occurred out of public view.”
Chatelain said the Board had talked about the merger for months before the decision was made and McKenzie has maintained the board did not break any laws.
“I’m not aware of any issue involving violating open meetings laws,” he said Wednesday.
AGB’s report also wasn’t posted to the LSU System website until 4:54 p.m. on the day of the meeting, giving the public insufficient time to respond or comment, Cope said.
“The management of the LSU System doesn’t behave in a way consistent with a great university,” Cope said. “It’s a clear indicator of outside political influence.”
The attorney general will now either proceed with Cope’s claim or decline it with a written letter.
