Sunday April 28, 2024 
ZOOM meetings violate Open Meetings Law
With respect to open meetings to conduct the public’s business in the state of NY, NYS Public Officers Law Article 7, §100, the Legislative Declaration, states as follows: “It is essential to the maintenance of a democratic society that the public business be performed in an open and public manner and that the citizens of this state be fully aware of and able to observe the performance of public officials and attend and listen to the deliberations and decisions that go into the making of public policy.”
“The people must be able to remain informed if they are to retain control over those who are their public servants.”
“It is the only climate under which the commonweal will prosper and enable the governmental process to operate for the benefit of those who created it.”
Those words are easy to understand, nor do you need a JD from Harvard to know what they mean, because laws aren’t written for lawyers; they are written for the common person.
So why then is the public’s business concerning PFAS in OUR groundwater being conducted in what amount to “secret” meetings on ZOOM, which is not accessible to people in Poestenkill who are “the public?”
For example, in a 12/23/21 PFOA UPDATE by Bob Brunet, the self-styled “Public Health Coordinator” in Poestenkill, we read that “Supervisor Hammond and I are both very involved in the periodic Zoom update meetings with our partners in resolving this issue, the RCDOH, the NYSDEC, the NYSDOH, the Algonquin Middle School, and others,” when the only thing they are all “partners” in is this whitewash on-going in Poestenkill to protect themselves from charges of neglect of duty leading to this contamination of our groundwater which is why they need to conduct their secret meetings on ZOOM.
More recently, we were told that the DEC shill CCCDW would be hosting a Community Forum ONLINE on Thursday May 19 from 7pm to 8:45pm, which was another ZOOM meeting not open to the community.
Why?
What are they trying to hide?
Paul Plante, Poestenkill