DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Court of Appeals says three members of the Harrison County Board of Supervisors must pay thousands of dollars in court costs and a fine for failure to hold meetings open to the public. The case centers on two November 2013 meetings the supervisors held after they had been sued by local farmers upset that a failed levee hadn’t been repaired.

In the ruling Wednesday, the court says supervisors Robert Smith, Walter Utman and Gaylord Pitt had no legal basis to close the meetings and therefore must be responsible for paying $200 in fines and attorney fees of about $25,000.

Only Utman remains on the board. Pitt died in May and Smith lost in the 2014 primary election.