Dubuque Mayor Roy Buol has expanded his efforts to sanction outgoing City Council member Jake Rios for sharing materials from closed-meeting discussions, reaching out to two state agencies for assistance. Rios this week skipped what would have been his final scheduled meeting as an elected official and instead took a parting shot at the mayor and council members in an email. Rios has not been to a council meeting since the November election, in which he did not seek re-election. His term expires at the end of the month. In the email to city officials, Rios wrote that he was unable to attend this week’s meeting due to a family event. But he listed another reason as well, saying he’d rather not be in the company of “politicians who care for nothing but their legacy.” Rios’ email was in response to one sent by Buol to the state ombudsman’s office regarding a “request for opinion.” The request was tied to Rios’ disclosure of information from closed-door council discussions of city manager Mike Van Milligen’s job performance.
