Flag Day Committee Didn't Violate OML By Talking On Sidewalk: AG

FRAMINGHAM, MA—The attorney general ruled in favor of a Framingham based committee when a resident lodged a complaint that it violated the open meeting law.

On Oct. 11, the attorney general's office issued a decision in which a complaint filed on July 11 alleged that the Framingham Flag Day Parade Committee violated the OML.

Deborah Butler originally filed the complaint with the committee on May 25, and it was relayed to the AG's office in July. Butler alleged that the committee, which met multiple times and sometimes without a quorum, was seen on the sidewalk having a discussion on May 2.

In the decision, the attorney general stated that after Framingham became a city and elected its first mayor in 2017, the mayor had asked two employees to resume the Flag Day parade that had been defunct. The employees formed a committee from businesses and people in the community. They met several times and didn't always take formal votes.

In the decision, the attorney general ruled that because the mayor had created a committee in an effort to advise her, it wasn't subject to OML regulations, that it is not a "public body."

"In reaching a determination, we reviewed the original complaint, the committee's response, and the request of further review filed our office," reads the determination letter.

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