MFP to court: Open meetings

The Mississippi Free Press (MFP) asked a Chancery Court in Hinds County on Sept. 11 to hold the state's House Republican Caucus meetings be open to the public under the Open Meetings Act. 

Last year, the full Mississippi Ethics Commission rejected the Mississippi Free Press’ argument and declared that the Legislature is not a “public body” under the law. 

The Republican Caucus, whose members constitute a majority of the lower chamber, meet behind closed doors. Outgoing House Speaker Philip Gunn had long used the secret meetings to set agendas on legislative priorities.

The meetings have often left not only the press and the public but other lawmakers in the dark about major legislative maneuvers until the day they happen. 

“The public deserves access to ... where their elected officials make decisions,” MFP Editor/CEO Donna Ladd said Monday. 

 “We will continue to fight for transparency and to ensure the Legislature is not held to a lower standard than every city council and board of supervisors across the state.”

Rob McDuff, an attorney with the Mississippi Center For Justice, filed the Mississippi Free Press’ brief, asked the court to “hold that all meetings of the House Republican Caucus that include a quorum of the membership of the Mississippi House of Representatives and that are not purely social must comply with the Open Meetings Act be open to the press and the public.”

On Dec. 1, 2022, Mississippi Ethics Commission Director Tom Hood recommended that the commission rule in favor of the MFP. The Ethics Commission rejected Hood’s recommendation on a 5-3 vote. The panel’s majority wrote the Open Meetings Act “does not expressly include or exclude the House, the Senate, or the Legislature as a whole.” 

Because the House is a policymaking entity, it is a ‘public body’ covered by the Open Meetings Act. Accordingly, the House Republican Caucus meetings "must be open if they contain a majority of the House members and therefore constitute a quorum,” the brief says.

During the 2023 legislative session, Sen. Jason Barrett (R-Brookhaven) filed a bill that would have amended Mississippi Code § 25-41-3 to clarify that the list of “meetings” covered under the Open Meetings Act includes “a quorum of members of a public body that may deliberate or act upon any matter” under their purview. The bill died without a vote. (MFP 09/11/23)