"The Budget Retreat"

Over the years, whether it has been in sales in the securities business or in the insurance business, I have been to some pretty awesome "team building" events. Some were pretty outlandish.

One such event was an "emergency" "top priority" sales event in New York City, where brokers were flown in and after attending a sunset cocktail pre-session at the World Trade Center overlooking all of the kingdom, sales staff were treated to a sales pump session for a new airline private placement offering----one of those now outlawed private partnerships that was for rebuilt 747's. At the highlight of the sales pitch, the leader chanted "They'll fly forever" which the brokers repeated till the walls echoed. Then at the peak of frenzy, the leaders threw towels out into the auditorium "ala Elvis style" with the logo of the airline on them.

You all may remember the "rest of the story." After the brokers had returned on the red eye flight on Sunday nite, they awoke on Monday to learn that "Aloha Airlines" had the top of one of it's airplanes blow off. So much for "They'll fly forever."

Ever since that incident----I have been a little wary of those private "team building" sessions. Maybe it was the picture of all those passengers clinging to the seats as the airplane decended.

So-----I have approached with some calm sensibility the news that our beloved school district is headed off to a "team building" event called a "budget retreat."
The problem, of course, is that budgets and short and long range planning are NOT among the NINE acceptable exceptions to the Open Meeting Law-----as seen in the prior post. Yes. We all should have been invited.

As many of my dear readers remember, there was pervasive and intense public involvement in the planning of the new Evansville High School and there has always been open debate in matters of annual budgeting. There is no question that public discussion may be uncomfortable because there may be differences. However, the last time I checked at the dinner table, and yes teens are involved, there are some pretty vigorous areas of difference in all sorts of matters. It comes with the territory.

It's time to open wide the doors. Let the discussion begin. After all. This is not a marriage encounter weekend. It's about budgeting. Big difference.

(Ed. Note: Click on the post to access the model Open Records statute; The NINE exceptions allowed for executive session begin on Page 29)