The Mayor of Nogales City Council has violated the law on public meetings, AG Mayes said

Arizona’s attorney general notified Nogales’ mayor and city council in early October that a rally they held in March allegedly violated public gathering laws.

At the March 22 meeting, the council met with representatives from Australian mining company South32 to discuss the construction of a remote operations center in Nogales, according to the attorney general’s letter sent Oct. 10.

The attorney general’s office alleged that the Nogales City Council and Mayor Jorge Maldonado violated several public gathering laws before, during and after the meeting.

Although a flyer was posted at City Hall at least 24 hours in advance, the announcement was not posted online and did not include an agenda, which did not meet the standards required for flyers for council meetings, the letter said.

The attorney general’s letter also stated that the meeting should have been public because not only were the majority of members present, but the topic was a community matter and there was no notice of a board meeting.

No minutes were taken during the meeting nor posted afterwards, which again constituted a violation.

The Attorney General’s Office directed the Nogales and Maldonado City Council to receive training on open meeting laws, and to comply with all open meeting laws in the future. All future discussions with South32 must be open, the letter said.

The Republic has reached out to Maldonado and Nogales council members, but they have not responded at this time.

South32 recently broke ground about the controversial Hermosa mine in nearby Patagonia, worrying activists and locals in the area.