Better Government Association

Access to Government Pays Should Be Just the Start

It may soon be much easier to find out how a big chunk of our tax dollars is being spent.

(EDITORIAL)
Posted on: Friday, 25 May 2007, 12:00 CDT

This week the state Senate approved a bill that would list names, job titles and salaries of employees of the state's three government branches and local government agencies on the Internet, The Associated Press reported.

Sponsored by the Senate's Republican leader, Dominic Pileggi of Delaware County, the bill would require counties, municipalities, school districts, authorities, commissions and other government agencies to do the same.

This bill is sorely needed. Pennsylvania is notoriously difficult about releasing information. The Better Government Association watchdog group has ranked the state's freedom of information as nearly the worst in the nation, with only Alabama and South Dakota scoring lower.

The Pennsylvania Newspaper Association recently launched a Web site to bring attention to open-records reform.

Capitalizing on the recent wave of government reform and the resulting new faces in the legislature, www.passopenrecords.org posts the latest news about the fight for a better open-records law.

Not sure why this issue is important to you? This list from the Web site about how our current, puny open-records law impacts you should help:

--It means government officials do not have to share a good many public records with you, the citizens and taxpayers.

--It means school officials can hold off on telling parents about a bomb threat made against an upcoming school event until after the event is over.

--It means that government agencies can hold meetings and retreats in secret, without disclosing what was discussed or how much of the taxpayers' money was spent.

--It means that most basic facts, like the salaries public officials earn, can often be kept secret.

Check out the Web site to learn more about the importance of open records. You can read about other people's quests for information that should be easily attainable and share your stories, too.

The more we band together in support of reform, the faster it will come.