The Oak Harbor City Council still shows little interest in obeying the Washington state Open Public Meetings Act, having violated it again at a special meeting Monday night.

The full council met in closed session to consider the qualifications of nine candidates seeking to be appointed to the vacant council position. After deliberation, the council members returned to public session to say they had decided on four finalists. End of meeting.

The new mayor, new city attorney, veteran council members and new council member didn’t realize that the Open Public Meetings Act requires that all decisions be put to a vote in front of the public. Decisions cannot be  made in a closed meeting, as the city attorney acknowledged Wednesday after studying the law. He should have known that, having served as Island County Prosecutor in the past, but then again so should the mayor, who campaigned on open government, and all the council members who recently went though another open meetings snafu when subcommittee meetings violated the law.

Let us reiterate: Follow the spirit, not just the words, of the Open Public Meeting Act. Mayor Scott Dudley should have complained about the council’s decision to close the doors on the nine candidates, press and public. The  candidates were not even given a chance to state their case to the public and TV camera. Couldn’t all nine have been given five minutes to tell what they have to offer and what their goals are? Didn’t the council have 45 minutes to spare to hear the candidates before going into an executive session?

The council wasn’t required to discuss the merits of the respective candidates in private. It was technically legal to do so, but why? The candidates put their names forward for an elected position.  They willingly entered the public arena. Their qualifications, personalities and ideas could have been discussed in public in a dignified and respectful manner. Hiding behind closed doors was the easy way out, and deciding behind closed doors was the illegal way out.

The one positive thing is that Prosecutor Bill Hawkins quickly admitted the mistake and promised to reschedule the meeting, starting from scratch.  Fine, but this time don’t shut the doors. Show the public and candidates some respect by conducting the entire process in the open.