Between the Lines: 'Sunshine' Vital For Arkansans

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

There is one issue voters of any political stripe should agree upon. It has to do with the accountability of government, which is as important at the local level as it is in higher office.

The question voters should ask of all candidates -- Democratic, Republican, Green Party, Libertarian -- is simple. How committed are you to open government?

Most candidates will answer that they're for it. Open government is akin to motherhood, baseball and apple pie, right? Everybody is for that.

That's why the voter must probe deeper, really checking out what a candidate believes at his or her core about public involvement in public affairs.

This week is a particularly good time to be asking such questions. National Sunshine Week began Sunday and continues all week as media outlets led by the American Society of Newspaper Editors focus on what it takes to preserve and protect the public's right to know what government is doing.

But keep asking the question, not just today and tomorrow but all the way up to the primaries and general election and afterward. Belief in transparency in the conduct of public business and in the freedom of information ought to be bedrock qualifications for any public office.

The better, more-prepared candidates will know, for example, that there are federal and state laws protecting the freedom of information. And they will commit to preserve that freedom for citizens to access the meetings and records of government.

In Arkansas, that means understanding, supporting and abiding by the state Freedom of Information Act. The law guides which meetings and records of government must be open to public access and is accepted as one of the strongest of the sunshine laws in the nation.

While it is important for all who serve in government to know the law, it is even more necessary for those who seek election to the Arkansas Legislature to know and appreciate its value.

State lawmakers are the ones who can rewrite the law and it is in the legislative venue that the greatest challenges to the Arkansas FOI Act are met, often engineered by people who don't want the public to have the access it does now. The same holds true at the federal level since the Congress can similarly rewrite the federal law.

It is important, too, to elect state-level officials who will champion the FOI Act. It matters to the way they all conduct their offices and, in the case of the attorney general, to how that office interprets and defends the law itself.

So choose among the candidates well, insisting that they be accountable and expect government to operate in the sunshine.

Oversight at all levels of government is essential but it can't come entirely from within the government.

That's really why freedom of information laws exist. The laws allow citizens to look over the shoulders of elected officials, to watchdog how the governments operate.

Granted, a lot of non-governmental oversight comes from the media who report on cities, counties, states and the federal government.

But everyday citizens need to take a more determined role in that process, not just by electing candidates who will comply with the law but by fully utilizing the public's rights under the law.

Importantly, the Arkansas law protects the same rights for every citizen that it does to someone who works for a newspaper or any other media outlet.

If you don't know what those rights are, a handy reference is available online. The Arkansas Press Association, one of multiple sponsors, helps publish the Freedom of Information Handbook that is updated regularly. Download a copy of the 16th edition at http://arkansaspress.org/publications/38-foi-handbook.

The handbook includes the text of the state law, answers to commonly asked questions, references to attorneys general opinions and court cases and summaries of related federal laws.

Take a look, then add your voice to those championing freedom of information this Sunshine Week and all year round.

Commentary on 03/19/2014