Selectmen's Discussion on Flatto's Replacement Likely April 6

The Board of Selectmen may begin discussing the subject of who should replace First Selectman Ken Flatto on April 6.

Flatto, who is leaving office at the end of April to take a job in Gov. Dannel Malloy's administration, said Wednesday afternoon that he planned to hold a closed-door session on the topic at the next regular Board of Selectmen's meeting on April 6 before opening the meeting to the public. The selectmen normally meet at 4:30 p.m. in Sullivan-Independence Hall.

Flatto, who's been first selectman for 11 and-a-half non-consecutive years, said he planned to talk about his experiences in the job and that he was waiting for word from Town Attorney Richard Saxl about whether discussions could move onto potential replacements without the public present.

State Freedom of Information laws allow the selectmen to talk about potential replacements for Flatto behind closed doors but require that the selectmen give advance notice to those potential replacements so they have the opportunity to request discussions about them be held in public, according to Thomas Hennick, public education officer at the state FOI Commission in Hartford.

But Flatto can't go into a closed-door meeting on April 6 without Steeneck's or Walsh's consent. The FOI law requires that two-thirds of a board vote in favor of going into a closed-door meeting before such a meeting can be held. The Board of Selectmen has three members, so either Walsh or Steeneck would have to agree with Flatto.

Steeneck on Wednesday evening said she didn't want to "pigeonhole" Flatto about his planned closed-door meeting April 6. She said she had no problem with discussing first selectman candidates in public and had no reason not to do it in public. She said Flatto may want to talk about himself and his own job performance on April 6.

Walsh didn't return a call for comment about whether he favored having the discussions about first selectman candidates in public or behind closed doors.

Hennick said even if the Board of Selectmen agrees to talk in public about who should be appointed as Flatto's replacement, the FOI law allows Flatto and Steeneck, who are members of the same political party, to hold a "caucus" on the subject, which can be held behind closed doors.

Steeneck and Walsh would have 30 days from the date Flatto leaves office to decide on Flatto's replacement, and the replacement would have to be a Democrat because Flatto is a Democrat. If Steeneck and Walsh can't agree, the question is turned over to elective town officers of the Democratic Party and those officers "shall not include state representatives or town officers who serve on town boards whose members are not all elected at one town election for the same term," according to state statute.

The public could challenge a decision by Walsh and Steeneck - or by the elective town officers - by submitting petitions signed by at least 5 percent of voters within 15 days of the decision by Walsh and Steeneck or the elective town officers. That would then trigger a special election.