Sunshine policy adopted; Solid Waste District T appoints Jim Dickerson as official custodian of records

Working with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Solid Waste District T is making changes to tighten up its policies and procedures, including a Missouri Sunshine Law policy and designated records custodian.
At a meeting late last week, the governing board of the solid waste district discussed the need for the policy and designated the director, Jim Dickerson, as custodian of the records.
Dickerson will be responsible for making certain the organization complies with the provisions of the law.
The Solid Waste District had failed to comply with the requirements for record keeping and public meeting notices, according to a performance audit completed earlier this year.
In order to comply with the intent of the Sunshine Law, the district has adopted a policy that mirrors what the Missouri Attorney General’s office recommends.
The policy addresses what is a public meeting and what can be discussed behind closed doors, posting of notices, meeting minutes and requests for public records. The policy also addresses the costs for duplicating public records.
The performance audit cited the district for a number of items including an overall lack of oversight.
The performance audits are mandated by a provision in state law that requires DNR to review each solid waste district every three years as funding allows. The audits focus on how effectively districts are performing.
Since it had been eight or nine years since District T had a performance audit, DNR officials said they expected to have some findings that needed corrective action. 
The findings were turned over to the district in June. DNR required the district to respond with a plan to correct the problems within 60 days.
The audit specifically addressed the district’s failure to comply with the Missouri Sunshine Law. It is commonly referred to as the open meetings/record law that requires governmental and taxpayer funded entities to keep their records and meetings open to the public and other agencies.
The audit cited a number of changes the district needs to make in order to comply with the provisions of the Sunshine Law.
The DNR performance audit was completed by McBride, Lock and Associates, of Kansas City, Mo.
Region T Solid Waste District operates under the umbrella of the Lake of the Ozarks Council of Local Governments.
The district serves Camden, Miller and Laclede counties. It is funded through tipping fees collected at landfills and distributed by the DNR’s solid waste program.
Contact this reporter at joycem@lakesunleader.com or deannaw@lakesunleader.com