This week is the celebration of "Sunshine Week" across America.
Sunshine Week, an initiative of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, focuses a spotlight on open government at the national, state, and local levels. The basic idea: government of, by, and for the people must be open and accessible. The presumption is that government records and meetings are open. Very few exceptions to this rule are allowed.
We are fortunate that New York State provides easy and accurate guidance regarding questions on open government, open meetings, and the accessibility of public records. A simple phone call or email to the Department of State’s Committee on Open Government usually results in a prompt response, even in writing if desired. This is a free service. You can also click here to find the Committee's page of videos on NYS Open Meetings Law and FOIL.
There has been a disturbing trend in recent years, on the part of elected and appointed officials at all levels of government, to conveniently ignore the basic premise of open government. One excuse or another for this is often given, but the public is usually told that these transgressions against open government are either inadvertent, or worse - are for our own good. While excuses are sometimes legitimate, more often they simply contribute to a government more comfortable operating in the shadows. One of the greatest threats to our form of government is the quiet chipping away of the very civil liberties we blindly assume our government is protecting and promoting.
When fulfilling a request for public records is unnecessarily delayed, denied, or delayed for research into the accessibility of the requested records, open government is being thwarted. When chance meetings and/or social occasions involving a quorum of a public body develop into discussions about public business, open government is being thwarted. When government officials deceive the public about the purpose of a closed meeting, open government is being thwarted. Even candidates for office who profess to support open government all too often succumb to the convenience of the shadows once elected, thwarting the very principle of the public’s right to know and participate in its government. When this happens, every voter is cheated; every vote is based on deception.
Sunshine Week is aptly named. Sunshine clears away the shadows. Sunshine is a natural disinfectant, used for ages when cleaning house. Sunshine Week reminds us that it is the people who made the government, and the people have a right to know what its government is doing and how it makes decisions. When elected officials present “pre-determined” decisions and policies, the public is being cheated out of its part in the deliberative process. Occasionally there is public outcry to “hold our elected officials accountable” in one issue or another. But it is the public’s responsibility to remain actively vigilant and aware by asking questions and making sure there are answers and an open and free venue for discussion. And it’s incumbent upon government officials to accept their responsibility to follow the law and embrace the public as partners in open government, rather than adversaries or obstacles to agendas.
Sunshine Week, an initiative of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, focuses a spotlight on open government at the national, state, and local levels. The basic idea: government of, by, and for the people must be open and accessible. The presumption is that government records and meetings are open. Very few exceptions to this rule are allowed.
We are fortunate that New York State provides easy and accurate guidance regarding questions on open government, open meetings, and the accessibility of public records. A simple phone call or email to the Department of State’s Committee on Open Government usually results in a prompt response, even in writing if desired. This is a free service. You can also click here to find the Committee's page of videos on NYS Open Meetings Law and FOIL.
There has been a disturbing trend in recent years, on the part of elected and appointed officials at all levels of government, to conveniently ignore the basic premise of open government. One excuse or another for this is often given, but the public is usually told that these transgressions against open government are either inadvertent, or worse - are for our own good. While excuses are sometimes legitimate, more often they simply contribute to a government more comfortable operating in the shadows. One of the greatest threats to our form of government is the quiet chipping away of the very civil liberties we blindly assume our government is protecting and promoting.
When fulfilling a request for public records is unnecessarily delayed, denied, or delayed for research into the accessibility of the requested records, open government is being thwarted. When chance meetings and/or social occasions involving a quorum of a public body develop into discussions about public business, open government is being thwarted. When government officials deceive the public about the purpose of a closed meeting, open government is being thwarted. Even candidates for office who profess to support open government all too often succumb to the convenience of the shadows once elected, thwarting the very principle of the public’s right to know and participate in its government. When this happens, every voter is cheated; every vote is based on deception.
Sunshine Week is aptly named. Sunshine clears away the shadows. Sunshine is a natural disinfectant, used for ages when cleaning house. Sunshine Week reminds us that it is the people who made the government, and the people have a right to know what its government is doing and how it makes decisions. When elected officials present “pre-determined” decisions and policies, the public is being cheated out of its part in the deliberative process. Occasionally there is public outcry to “hold our elected officials accountable” in one issue or another. But it is the public’s responsibility to remain actively vigilant and aware by asking questions and making sure there are answers and an open and free venue for discussion. And it’s incumbent upon government officials to accept their responsibility to follow the law and embrace the public as partners in open government, rather than adversaries or obstacles to agendas.
