A Clark County Superior Court judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit against C-Tran that alleged a special committee violated open meetings law when it rearranged the membership on the transit agency’s board of directors last fall.
Judge David Gregerson ruled that the Open Public Meetings Act does not apply to C-Tran’s board composition review committee because it isn’t a public agency, as defined under the OPMA. Therefore, there couldn’t have been a violation. He called the issue a political one, not legal.
Named in the suit, which was filed April 22, are defendants C-Tran; its executive director, Jeff Hamm; and all current C-Tran board members. The plaintiffs are listed as John Ley, John Hallinen, Gerald Halle, Michael and Carole Kelley, Michael Conner, Lisa Ross, Deborah Ward, Pat Anderson, Brian Rohan, Robert Nichols, John Burke, Robert Ray Larimer and Mark Heagy.
The lawsuit alleged that the board composition review committee violated the Open Public Meetings Act at a Nov. 18 meeting when it voted to change the organization of the C-Tran board and didn’t give proper notice of the meeting. The claim echoed an accusation from Clark County councilors following the change, which diminished the county’s influence on the C-Tran board. County councilors threatened to sue C-Tran but never followed through.
The suit, among other things, argued that the November decision should be “null and void,” including all actions taken by the C-Tran board since the new composition went into place in January. That would have included the approval of a bus rapid transit system linking Fourth Plain Boulevard to downtown Vancouver.
During Friday’s hearing, the defendants’ attorney, Michael K. Ryan of K&L Gates in Seattle, argued that none of the suit’s claims had any merit.
He said that the current C-Tran board is inaccurately named in the suit because none of the individual board members violated any open meetings laws in 2015. He also argued that the board composition review committee is not a public agency.
Another claim in the suit is that Hamm specifically violated the Open Public Meetings Act. However, the meeting notice was published before the required 20 days in The Columbian and online, Ryan said. Further, Hamm couldn’t have violated the act because he is not a governing body, he said.
The plaintiffs’ attorney, Damien Hall of Ball Janik, a Portland-based law firm, countered that Hamm may not be a governing body, but he’s responsible for posting notices on its behalf. He argued that the Open Public Meetings Act should apply to the board composition review committee because of the “public nature” of its business.
Hall said his clients’ concerns are that the board composition review committee could be holding meetings whenever and wherever.
Gregerson, who asked many questions during the hearing, acknowledged this concern, adding that the committee could even hold a meeting in the restroom.
However, he ultimately agreed with the defense’s arguments and dismissed the lawsuit.
“I think in all, it’s a verification of C-Tran’s position all along in that C-Tran is deliberate and thoughtful in how it goes about its business,” C-Tran’s Scott Patterson said of the decision.
Patterson, C-Tran’s planning, development and public affairs director, said after the hearing that he was struck by how “inquisitive and informed” Gregerson was. “He asked a lot of good questions from both sides,” he said.
C-Tran will pay its portion of legal costs, which is largely covered by public funds, Patterson said.
