Editorials

Editorial: Sunshine

This is what the Rutland Herald had to say about government transparency ahead of Sunshine Week, which begins on Sunday:

Too many times each year, our journalists have to call out elected officials for being in violation of the state’s open meeting and open records laws. On a few of those occasions (which we have written about), we have had to educate the violators with letters citing statute, and even reaching out to town attorneys to underscore our concerns about lack of transparency and shadow government decision-making.

Fortunately, Vermont has a strong advocate in Secretary of State Jim Condos, who, as a longtime elected official at the local level, has incorporated open government and public records into the mission of his ongoing work with the state’s 246 municipalities.

Next week, March 13-19 is Sunshine Week, which was launched in 2005 by the American Society of News Editors — now News Leaders Association — and has grown into an enduring initiative to promote open government.

The week is designed to promote a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information. Participants usually include news media, civic groups, libraries, nonprofit organizations, schools and individuals concerned about the public’s right to know.

In addition, March 16 gets an added moniker as Freedom of Information Day.

According to the American Presidency Project, Proclamation 5447: Freedom of Information Day, 1986, “March 16 is the anniversary of the birth of James Madison, our fourth President and one of the principal figures in the Constitutional Convention. Madison eloquently expressed the guarantees in the Bill of Rights, in particular in the freedoms of religion, speech and of the press protected by the First Amendment. He understood the value of information in a democratic society, as well as the importance of its free and open dissemination. He believed that through the interaction of the Government and its citizens, facilitated by a free press and open access to information, the Government could be most responsive to the people it serves. Surely the American experience has proved him right.”

The Freedom of Information Act was enacted in 1966. It has been a valuable tool for all journalists, whether it has been covering The White House or our local select boards.

It’s our duty as journalists “to shine light into the dark recesses of government secrecy,” as the Society of Professional Journalists notes on its website.

But every citizen benefits from open government. Everyone deserves access to public information and what it means for you and your community. It’s your right to know.

Jim Kenyon, a columnist for the Valley News, recently published a telling example of how the Select Board in Hartland has openly ignored a portion of the open meeting law in Vermont so they could conduct town business in executive sessions.

“By promising the public a seat in the room when decisions are made, Vermont’s open meeting law is supposed to keep elected officials from doing whatever they want, whenever they want,” Kenyon wrote.

Were it not for a videographer working for Community Access Television, the example would not have been dragged out into the light. (Newspapers around the nation, including this one, have ongoing partnerships with local public access in their mission toward covering local government and sharing local content.)

After adjourning their regular meeting, the board’s chair excused the videographer, who asked, “Are you still meeting?” (and continuing to record). The chair indicated the board was going to have an off-camera discussion about a local fund controlled by the Select Board. Because the fund goes to help Hartland citizens in need, the board decided it needed to protect the individuals making requests. “I’m all about transparency for news,” the chair said. “I don’t consider the Campbell-Merritt Fund news. I consider it gossip.”

She later told Kenyon she knew it was illegal, but did not seem worried the board would be penalized.

“Along with breaking state law, the Hartland board’s secret dealings block the media from fulfilling its government watchdog role. Without the ability to observe the board’s decision-making, how can the public be assured money from the funds is distributed fairly? Is the board rejecting requests based on a resident’s race or religion?” Kenyon wrote, noting the town does make public the names of delinquent taxpayers, who also are obviously having a hard time making ends meet.

Public officials conduct themselves on behalf of the public. They do so in public, and their meetings are warned publicly and their minutes are posted publicly. Except from notable exceptions, we all have a right to know.

Let the sun shine in.

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