The Lancaster County District Attorney's Office has received a letter requesting an investigation into whether the Lancaster County Government Study Commission has violated the state's open meetings law, the Sunshine Act.

Ephrata resident Rose E. King sent District Attorney Craig Stedman a letter requesting an investigation.

"I confirm I received the letter," Stedman wrote in an e-mail this morning. "I will review it and handle it appropriately."

The New Era obtained a copy of the letter today.

King, when reached by phone this morning, asked how the New Era received the letter, declined to comment and hung up.

King frequently attends Government Study Commission meetings, commission member Greg Sahd said.

And, she writes letters to the editor that are conservative in nature, newspaper records show.

GOP Chairman Dave Dumeyer said this morning he does not know King.

The investigation is the latest step in a flap that began on March 18.

That's when the Government Study Commission's Public Relations Committee met at the Lancaster County Courthouse — allegedly without giving public notice of the meeting in a newspaper of general circulation.

A media lawyer told the Lancaster New Era that in failing to advertise properly, the commission violated the open meeting law.

The members said then they advertised on the commission's Web site and did know they needed to advertise formally for committee meetings.

Commission member Sam Mecum, a lawyer who often advises the group on legal issues, has also said he doesn't believe the Sunshine Act requires committee meetings to be advertised in the newspaper.

After a New Era article published on March 21, commission member Sahd made a motion requesting that the commission ask the district attorney to investigate if the committee violated the Sunshine Act.

His motion was shot down by a 5-3 vote.

Sahd said he wanted to make sure the committee and commission's actions were on the up-and-up.

This morning, he said, "If the home rule charter was constructed in part in a series of illegal committee meetings, without duly advertising, then the charter itself is less than legal."

Sahd said he was not aware that an outside complaint has been filed with the District Attorney's Office.

Meanwhile, the Government Study Commission discussed its draft charter for county government during a public hearing Thursday night at the Farm & Home Center.

Among the proposed changes the 11-member commission is suggesting is an expansion of the number of county commissioners from three to five and the creation of a clerk of judicial records that combines the row offices of register of wills, prothonotary and clerk of courts.

One of the most-debated issues among the 35 people who attended Thursday's meeting was whether a proposed county executive, which would replace the county administrator position, should be elected by the people or appointed by the commissioners.

Carol Phillips, who chairs the study commission, said the charter calls for the executive to be appointed because that would allow the commissioners to conduct a nationwide search for someone to fill that post.

Member Bill Saylor said if the executive were elected, that could mean the post would be filled through a "popularity contest."

By a show of hands, a majority of those in attendance indicated they favored appointing the executive.

Other upcoming public hearings to discuss the charter are: 7 p.m. April 29 in Mount Joy Borough Hall, 21 E. Main St. Mount Joy; and 9 a.m. May 3 in Garden Spot Village Chapel, 433 S. Kinzer Ave., New Holland.

On May 6, the study commission will take a final vote on its proposed charter, incorporating possible revisions requested during other ongoing public meetings. Voters will then be asked to approve or disapprove the entire proposed charter in November.


Staff writer Robyn Meadows can be reached at rmeadows@LNPnews.com or 481-6025.