There is an open government crisis in New York State.
One of the biggest problems? Public bodies meeting in secret when they shouldn’t be.
A study by the New York State Authorities Budget Office found that public authorities conducted executive sessions correctly only 44% of the time.
That means secrecy — not transparency — is the norm.
The ABO read 397 sets of minutes from 16 public authorities covering January 2023 through June 2025. Of the 549 reasons boards gave for closing a meeting, 240 held up. Boards cited “legal” 46 times, “litigation” 68 times and “personnel” 29 times without naming the specific matter. Two meetings gave no reason at all.
Read the report: Governance Review — Public Authority Boards: Use of Executive Session — NYS Authorities Budget Office, January 2026.
The eight lawful grounds for closing a meeting are on our Open Meetings Law page.
