New Hope On Right to Know

After years of frustration, open-government advocates in New York State may have reason for optimism. A bill before the Legislature co-sponsored by Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. could revolutionize the way the Open Meetings and Freedom of Information Laws are enforced. As things stand now, officials do not face any risk if they do not comply with the laws, and the public and news media have no recourse but to bring expensive lawsuits when information or access is denied. Changes are overdue.

Traditionally, the state’s rules on what the public can know are based on an assumption of openness. However, this has always been open to interpretation, and, since the laws were essentially toothless, with no penalties for noncompliance, the courts were the only alternative. The proposed Integrity in Government Act would change that by giving enforcement powers to the existing New York Committee on Open Government.

It would work like this: The committee would be able to mediate complaints about questionable closed-door meetings and officials’ refusals to provide documents. If that process failed to produce results, the committee could compel the release of records. And, what is most important, the act would for the first time allow fines of up to $1,000 for officials who break the Open Meetings Law by holding improper “executive sessions” or violate Freedom of Information Law requirements by withholding documents or failing to respond in a timely manner.

The chance of being fined, not to overlook publicly embarrassed, for violations of these laws would remind officials, first and foremost, that they are public servants and that the public’s right to know is paramount