Watchdog group calls for Oakland County…
Watchdog group calls for Oakland County commissioner to resign
Oakland County Board of Commissioners
Oakland County Commissioner Shelley Goodman Taub
Mark Cavitt/The Oakland Press,
The Oakland County Board of Commissioners Auditorium, 1200 N. Telegraph Road, Building 12 East, Pontiac, Mich.
Progress Michigan
Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan
By Mark Cavitt | The Oakland Press
PUBLISHED: August 12, 2019 at 3:11 p.m. | UPDATED: June 17, 2021 at 5:11 a.m.
A watchdog group is demanding an Oakland County commissioner resign from the board after a text message last week to Republican colleagues was made public. The text warned commissioners that news media were seeking emails about discussions for replacing longtime county executive L. Brooks Patterson.
A screenshot of the text shared on Twitter read: "EMERGENCY! Read now! You are about to receive FOIA's for all your email regarding Brook's replacement! DELETE! DELETE! DELETE! Now!"
Commissioner Shelley Taub, R-Bloomfield Hills, told the Oakland Press she sent the text to Republican commissioners after receiving word that a local reporter had filed a Freedom of Information Act request seeking commissioner emails about the process to replace Patterson, who died on Aug. 3.
Deleting emails and records of government activity to avoid FOIA requests is a violation of various state laws, according to legal experts who spoke with The Detroit Free Press.
The board will consider appointing a new county executive at its 9:30 a.m. meeting Friday. Some applicants will be interviewed Wednesday by a three-member committee comprised of two Democrats and one Republican commissioner.
Progress Michigan, a liberal organization whose website states it's mission is to hold public and government officials accountable, said Taub's text message suggests that county commissioners use private email accounts to conduct county business.
Lonnie Scott, executive director of Progress Michigan, said elected officials should not be using private emails to conduct public business.
"Even if they are, because of technology issues, they need to make sure those emails are included in Freedom of Information Act responses," he said. "Unfortunately, we've seen some very high-profile cases of that not happening like it should, which is why using government-issued emails is important.
The organization has been involved in a lawsuit with the Michigan Attorney General's office over former Attorney General Bill Schuette and his staff's use of private email accounts to conduct government business, a case that's now before the Michigan Supreme Court.
Taub said there was no ill intent behind the text message and would never suggest that her fellow Republican commissioners hide anything from the public or do something illegal.
She added that she has sent in all her emails, from both her personal and county accounts, in response to the FOIA request.
"I used stupid wording and was stupid about it," said Taub. "I'm not going to resign. No way. (Progress Michigan) has called for (L. Brooks Patterson) to resign 100,000 times and they called for others to resign as well."
Scott said that commissioners should show they're serious about transparency and being accountable to the public by immediately moving over to public email addresses.
"If the email system is in need of an update, they need to make it happen," he said.
Taub said she uses her private email and personal devices on occasion to conduct county business because her county-issued laptop doesn't always work properly.
"Nothing at Oakland County is top secret," Taub said. "We aren't giving away any trade secrets. I use my county computer when it works. Half the time, it does not work. The laptop is about 10 to 12 years old and it's a piece of junk."
Although it's not illegal, the county's electronic communications and technology policy says the use of the county's email system "is intended for county governmental services/functions."
Oakland County Treasurer, and 2020 county executive candidate, Andy Meisner is calling for an investigation. He said Taub was trying to hide public records from the public, which could include "dirty deals."
"Commissioner Taub's admission that she called on her colleagues to destroy public records demands investigation, and I expect a complaint will be filed triggering this investigation," said Meisner in a statement Tuesday. "We must know why Commissioner Taub wanted to hide 'regarding Brooks replacement' and what was traded away for votes."
In response to Meisner, Taub would not provide comment. Taub said she doesn't know of any "backdoor dealings" that may have taken place.
The policy reads in part: "The use of the Electronic Communications System is intended for County Governmental Services/Functions. Electronic Communications are capable of being forwarded without express permission of the original author. Therefore, Users must use caution in the transmission and dissemination of information outside, as well as inside the County, and must comply with federal and state law …"
Bill Mullan, communications officer for the county executive's office, said the office hosts an orientation, every two years, for newly-elected county commissioners.
In late January, Joellen Shortley, the county's chief legal officer, spoke during that orientation and informed the commissioners of the county's policy when it comes to email communications.
Several county commissioners, including Janet Jackson, D-Southfield, Robert Hoffman, R-Highland Township, and Adam Kochenderfer, R-Rochester Hills, list their private email accounts on the board's website as the preferred method of communication for constituents to reach them.
Former county commissioner, and board chair, David Woodward, also lists his personal email on the board's website. Woodward resigned last week to seek the county executive appointment.
The Oakland Press reached out to all 20 commissioners asking them if they have ever used their personal email to conduct county-related business.
Gwen Markham, D-Novi, prefers to conduct all county business from her county email account. She added that she understands the importance of keeping communications publicly available.
"The county email system, however, deletes our emails after four weeks," said Markham. "I have taken the additional step to forward any such emails (like reservations for conferences, meeting notices) to my personal email. Otherwise, I use the county email for all official business."
Michael Spisz, R-Oxford, said he does not support the use of personal accounts for county business.
"I do my best to not use my personal account for any county business," said Spisz. "Occasionally someone may send something to my personal email versus my county account, in which case I will forward back to my county account and respond from the county email account."
Helaine Zack, D-Huntington Woods, used to forward her county emails to her personal gmail account so that she could immediately access them on her phone. She stopped doing that in 2015 when commissioners were given county-issued iPads.
"When we got our county-issued iPads in 2015, it was suggested that we separate personal and professional emails," said Zack.
On Wednesday, State Sen. Jeremy Moss, D-Southfield, said Taub's actions should be investigated to ensure she did no violate Michigan FOIA's laws.
"Commissioner Taub's actions must be investigated by authorities so residents have the confidence that our government officials are working in their best interests," said Moss.
None of the other commissioners could be reached in time for publication.
Mark Cavitt | Multimedia Journalist
Mark Cavitt is a multimedia journalist with the MediaNews Group Michigan cluster.