Columbus Disbands 3 Panels Amid Open Records Questions

COLUMBUS, Ind. (AP) — A southern Indiana city has disbanded three of its redevelopment commission's subcommittees amid ongoing questions about whether they were covered by the state's open records law.

Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop said in disbanding the three panels that his city was just trying to "figure out the rules and follow them."

His action followed repeated complaints and requests for information by former Mayor Kristen Brown and some of her supporters about the Columbus Redevelopment Commission's activities. Brown served as mayor from 2012 to 2015 and was defeated by Lienhoop.

The (Columbus) Republic reports the most recent complaint alleges that the redevelopment commission isn't making its committee meetings public despite an October 2016 opinion by Indiana's public access counselor that the committees were subject to Indiana's open records law.