Kane and Garfield Commissions sued after meetings with interior secretary

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah group is suing two county commissions after private meetings with Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke.

The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance’s lawsuit against Kane and Garfield’s commissions claims their May 10 meetings with Zinke violated open meeting laws because they were not posted. It filed a lawsuit to Utah’s 3rd District Court on Tuesday.

Garfield County Commission Chairman Leland Pollock says the allegations in the lawsuit are “frivolous.” His Kane counterpart Dirk Clayson also denies any violations to Utah’s Open and Public Meetings Act and says the environment group should have made an attempt to engage in meaningful dialogue before filling the lawsuit.

Group officials say the commission did not respond to their June 13 request.