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The Rockville City Council was found in violation of the state's Open Meetings Act when it directed city staff members to begin lease negotiations with the Montgomery County Revenue Authority for RedGate Golf Course, according to an opinion by the Attorney General's Office.

The three-member Open Meetings Compliance Board stated in its ruling last week that the council's action to explore a lease agreement "extended beyond the permissible bounds for a closed meeting under the act."

The ruling comes three months after Rockville resident Joseph Jordan filed a complaint that council members violated the a during a Jan. 26 closed session in which the council sought legal advice on exploring a lease with the Revenue Authority.

"My contention that they were wrong in not coming out of executive session to discuss anything with action with the golf course was right," Jordan said. "I didn't have a problem with them discussing personnel matters or getting legal advice, but when they took a vote on what they were going to do I thought that was out of bounds."

"Citizens really need to constantly be vigilant and watch for things that they think aren't right; that's the role of citizens in respect to government," Jordan said.

City officials have maintained that they closed the meeting because discussions involved the possibility of laying off golf course employees. A discussion involving personnel matters is one of 14 exceptions that can be discussed in closed session, according to the law.

Mayor Susan R. Hoffmann said she does not agree with the Compliance Board's decision.

"There was nothing inappropriate," she said. "We were dealing with legal advice and legal advice was perfectly appropriate under [state law] to be in executive session."

In its analysis, the board ruled that the council was in compliance by obtaining legal advice from the city attorney and that "much of the discussion involved matters properly considered under the personnel exception as authorized by the act," but went too far when it gave direction to staff to begin negotiations.

"[W]e appreciate the governing body's concern about how affected employees would learn of their fate … but clearly any consideration about discontinuing a particular service or outsourcing responsibility for a service, or any discussion to explore such options, cannot automatically be considered as involving a personnel matter, even [though] either action would likely impact employees' jobs," the board stated.

Board members also stated that because other factors, such as costs and impacts to the city, were included in the discussion it cannot be considered a personnel matter.

There is not punishment for violating the Open Meetings Act.