From the Shelby (N.C.) Star (3/18/09): Just as the idea of pursuing happiness helped define our country more than two centuries ago, the ongoing pursuit of openness represents an essential part of the American character: a government accountable to the governed.
So as we greet the return of Sunshine Week, an annual event promoting the cause of open government, let’s take a moment to measure how far this pursuit has taken us in the past year.
* Outgoing governor Mike Easley issued an executive order on Jan. 9 regarding e-mails sent and received in connection with state business. The North Carolina Press association and other media organizations, including The Gazette, had filed suit against Mr. Easley last spring alleging that his administration followed a top-down strategy of deleting and concealing messages. This order made commendable progress toward clarifying e-mail’s status in regard to public records, even if it did come belatedly.
* Last year, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper and the press association organized a series of workshops across the state, including a stop in Gastonia, aimed at informing local officials about open government. The attorney general’s office and NCPA also teamed up to publish a handbook called the “Guide to Open Government and Public Records.”
* State Sen. David Hoyle tried to make it harder for government to hide behind deep pockets. The Gaston County Democrat filed a bill to restore the legal requirement that agencies successfully sued for public records violations have to pay the plaintiffs’ attorney fees. Unfortunately, the bill failed to pass by the time the General Assembly adjourned the 2008 short session.
* Also during last year’s legislative session, a group of lawmakers compromised the spirit of open government in their zeal to protect children from an almost certainly non-existent threat. By exempting information about recreation league athletes from public records law, they believe they would prevent sex predators from identifying potential victims – even though the proponents conceded that this scary scenario had never taken place in real life. Our prediction: Rather than thwarting predators, this law is much more likely to cut down on the number of tee-ball articles that proud grandparents like to stick on their refrigerators.
* On his first day in office, President Obama made a move to correct one of the previous administration’s biggest flaws: its tendency to confuse circling the wagons with handing out blindfolds. The federal government had assumed a more adversarial stance regarding Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests after the Sept. 11 attacks. However, the new president issued a memo that said, in part: “The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails.”
In fact, you can take the general idea a step further – when openness prevails, we face less doubt. Openness, the sunshine that eliminates shadows, represents the best defense against the suspicion and mistrust bred by the absence of freely flowing information. That’s the main reason why open government remains one of the most worthwhile pursuits, this week or any week.
Shelby Star Staff Editorial