[nfbmi-talk] Fw: July 24, 2012 MCB Minutes

Mon Jul 30 16:15:56 UTC 2012

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Farmer, Mel (LARA) 
To: 'joe harcz Comcast' 
Cc: Haynes, Carla (LARA) ; Cannon, Patrick (LARA) ; Luzenski, Sue (LARA) ; Zanger, Connie (LARA) 
Sent: Monday, July 30, 2012 11:58 AM
Subject: July 24, 2012 MCB Minutes

July 30, 2012

Mr. Paul Joseph Harcz

1365 Mt. Morris Rd.

Mt. Morris, MI 48458

joeharcz at concast.net

RE: July 24, 2012 MCB Minutes and Recording

Dear Mr. Harcz:

This notice is in response to your July 26, 2012 email to Mr. Patrick Cannon (attached) requesting copies of existing, nonexempt public records you describe regarding the Michigan Commission for the Blind (MCB) July 24, 2012 meeting as:

  1.. ".everything in the Commissioners packet including the Fellows Case they went in to closed 
      session over with all background materials and proposed minutes as soon as they are 

      produced."

      2. ".recording of said meeting. as an mp3 file on a thumb drive."

Please be informed that the Department is processing this request under the state's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), MCL 15.231 et seq.

Pursuant to MCL 15.235, Section 5(2)(c) and MCL 15.243, Section 13(1)(d) of the state's FOIA, your request is denied in part and granted in part.

As regards the denied portion of your request:

  1.. The Department's Michigan Commission for the Blind indicates that there were no records in the 
packet sent to the Commissioners regarding the Fellows case and closed meeting conducted to

discuss pending litigation regarding the case. 

  2.. Under the state's Open Meetings Act (OMA), a public body may meet in a closed session to 
consult with its attorney regarding pending litigation. The OMA requires that a separate set 

of minutes shall be taken which shall be retained by the public body and are not available to 

the public; and shall only be disclosed if required by a civil action under the OMA. Further, 

the minutes of the closed session may be destroyed one year and one day after approval of 

the minutes of the regular meeting at which the closed session was approved.

Thusly, I certify that the public records requested regarding the Fellows case do not exist under the name given by you, or reasonably known to the Department; and that if said records did exist, such records would be exempt from disclosure under the state's OMA and FOIA (MCL 25.243, Section 13(1)(d).

As regards the granted portions of your request, attached are copies of existing, nonexempt public records related to the information/records included in the MCB Commissioners packet. The requested recording of the meeting via an mp3 file on a thumb drive is being forwarded to you under separate cover by the MCB.

Under MCL 15.240 of the state's FOIA, you may, (1) submit a written appeal regarding the denial of any portion of your FOIA request to Mr. Steven H. Hilfinger, Director, Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Mike Zimmer, Chief Deputy Director, 611 W. Ottawa, 4th Floor, P.O. Box 30004, Lansing, MI 48909. Your appeal notice must include the word "appeal" and identify the reason(s) for reversal of the disclosure denial(s); or, (2) you may seek judicial review in circuit court within 180 days after the Department's final determination. If you prevail in court action, the court may award you reasonable attorney fees, costs, and disbursements. If the court finds the Department's actions to be arbitrary and capricious, the court shall award you, in addition to any actual or compensatory damages, punitive damages in the amount of $500.00.

Sincerely,

/S/ Melvin Farmer, Jr.

Central FOIA Coordinator

Attachments

MICHIGAN COMMISSION FOR THE BLIND

SPECIAL COMMISSION MEETING

201 N. Washington Square

Victor Center Building

2nd Floor Conference Room

Lansing, MI

July 24, 2012

12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

VIA Conference Call

To call in to this meeting:

Dial:  1-877-873-8017

Passcode:  7502991#

       I.                        CALL TO ORDER, ROLL CALL AND 

DETERMINATION OF QUORUM                                  12:00

     II.                        DISCUSSION OF PENDING LITIGATION                   12:05

(CLOSED SESSION)

  III.                        Review of DRAFT State Plan public 

comment summary                                                  12:15

 IV.                        Commissioners comments on 

Draft state plan                                                     12:35

   V.                        PUBLIC COMMENT                                                        12:50

 VI.                        ADJOURN                                                                        1:00

The meeting site is accessible.  Individuals attending the meeting are requested to refrain from using heavily scented personal care products in order to enhance accessibility for everyone.  People with disabilities requiring additional accommodations (such as materials in alternative format) in order to participate in the meeting should call Sue Luzenski at 517/335-4265 by July 23, 2012.

From: joe harcz Comcast [mailto:joeharcz at comcast.net] 
Sent: Wednesday, July 25, 2012 7:49 AM
To: Cannon, Patrick (LARA)
Cc: Zimmer, Mike (LARA); Larry Posont MCB Comm.; lydia Schuck MCB Comm.; John Scott MCB Comm.; Luzenski, Sue (LARA); Craig McManus RSA; daniel.frye at ed.gov; Carol Dobak; nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: ada request meeting information

July 26 ADA 504 Request Meeting Minutes Recording

Paul Joseph Harcz, Jr.

1365 E. Mt. Morris Rd.

Mt. Morris, MI  48458

joeharcz at comcast.net

Re: July 24 MCB Minutes and Recordings

To:

Patrick D. Cannon, etc.

(Via e-mail)

Sir,

I'm writing today to request everything in the Commissioner's packet including the Fellows case they went in to closed session over with all background materials and the proposed minutes as soon as they are produced. Of, course as a blind person pursuant to the ADA (which turns 22 tomorrow) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act which is uniformly violated in this state I request them in accessible format. To wit: send them as simple word documents and/or plain text enclosures to my e-mail address listed above.

In addition I'm requesting the recording of said meeting ASAP. That may be sent to my mailing address as an mp3 file on a thumb drive.

Note this relates to information that is supposed to be made routinely accessible to all people with disabilities in a timely manner again under the Rehabilitation Act. Note, you always say on all releases that all meetings are accessible and that includes documents, etc.

So just send this information out directly and accessibly.

Sincerely,

Paul Joseph Harcz, Jr.

Cc: M. Zimmer, LARA

Cc: RSA

Cc: MCB Commissioners

Cc: NFB MI

Cc: MPAS

Cc: several Attorneys at Law

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