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The Fort Myers News-Press
Open Government Needs Public Support
The News-Press
Florida’s rich heritage of open government is under attack again this year in the Legislature, and the state’s newspapers are joining forces, again, to resist that assault.
Today marks the third “Sunshine Sunday,” a special effort sponsored by the Florida Society of Newspaper Editors to increase public awareness of the importance of the state’s open government laws.
This is not a media issue. Every citizen has a vital interest in keeping public the meetings and records that can help the public understand what is being done in the its name.
But newspapers need strong open government laws to inform their readers about public business.
It frequently falls to the press to fight, sometimes in court, for access to records and meetings. A recent study by 30 Florida newspapers that involved 234 local agencies found that 43 percent of the agencies made unlawful demands of a person sent to request public records or simply refused to turn them over.
We need public support. In the two previous legislative years, almost all of about 300 proposed exemptions to the open government laws have been defeated. Part of that is due to a constitutional amendment passed by voters in 2002, requiring a two-thirds majority in both houses of the legislature to create exemptions to the open records and meetings laws.
Another key role for citizens is to contact legislators and urge them to vote against open government exemptions.
More than 50 new exemptions laws are being sought in the Legislature so far this session. Many are “real stinkers,” to use the characteristically blunt language of Barbara Peterson. She’s the president of the First Amendment Foundation in Tallahassee, which wages an endless resistance in defense of open government.
At stake is your right to know. We are eager to defend open government. We ask for your support in the fight because it is in your clear interest.
Urge our leaders in Tallahassee to reject legislation that restricts open government.
CONTACT THEM
• Sen. Burt Saunders, District 37 338-2777; saunders.burt.web@flsenate.gov
• Sen. Dave Aronberg, District 27 338-2646; aronberg.dave.web@flsenate.gov
• Sen. Mike Bennett, District 21 (800) 500-1239; bennett.mike.web@flsenate.gov
• Rep. Jerry Paul, District 71, (941)764-1100; paul.jerry@myfloridahouse.com
• Rep. Lindsay Harrington, District 72, (941) 575-5820; harrington.lindsay@myflorida house.com
• Rep. Bruce Kyle, District 73, 335-2411; kyle.bruce@myflorida house.com
• Rep. Jeff Kottkamp, District 74, 344-4900; kottkamp.jeff@myfloridahouse.com
• Rep. Carole Green, District 75, 433-6775; green.carole@myfloridahouse.com
• Speaker Johnnie Byrd (850) 488-1450; byrd.johnnie@myflorida house.com
• Senate President Jim King (850) 487-5229; king.jim.web@flsenate.gov
• Gov. Jeb Bush (850) 488-4441; jeb@myflorida.com
IMPORTANT STORIES BASED ON PUBLIC RECORDS
The News-Press
Many important stories published in The News-Press might never have appeared without the state’s open records and open meeting laws:
Without Florida’s open records laws, investigative reporter Lee Melsek might never have been able to document the shameful decay of a national treasure right here in Southwest Florida.
Melsek found Thomas A. Edison’s winter home, our popular historic tourist attraction, in distressingly poor condition. He was able to show that the owner, the City of Fort Myers, had been siphoning off millions in revenue from the home. Only 3 percent of the money it earned had been put back into maintenance and repair.
As a result of Melsek’s investigation, the operating structure of the home was changed, much-needed repairs are under way and this neglect is not likely to reoccur.
In November 2003 after a substitute bus driver caused an accident that injured 10 people, including nine children, education reporter David Plazas analyzed detailed information on all 700-plus Lee County school bus drivers.
The resulting story revealed that more than one in five drivers had multiple traffic citations while driving their personal vehicles and almost half had received at least one ticket, including speeding and careless driving charges. Thirty-four drivers had their licenses suspended before or while they were employed by the school district.
The story gave readers a sharp insight into safety issues affecting 38,000 children who ride district school buses.
Public records made it possible for environmental reporter Pam Hayford to nail down a story about Florida Gulf Coast University’s illegal dumping of water from a swimming pool construction site into a wetland. Records revealed that the university had been warned by the water management district to stop, but FGCU kept right on pumping.
The story was one of several such embarrassments for the “environmental university,” and led to a decision to hire an ombudsman to avoid recurrences.
Sometimes public records can be difficult — and expensive —to get.
When consulting companies under contract to the Town of Fort Myers Beach refused to hand over documents showing how they spent some of the money from a taxpayer-funded, $680,000 traffic study, The News-Press went to court to get the records.
The News-Press wanted time sheets showing what seven employees did for the 427.5 hours the firms billed the town for a feasibility study of a new bridge to the island.
As private companies, the two consultants argued that they were not subject to Florida’s Open Records Law.
Circuit Judge William McIver agreed with The News-Press and ruled that the companies were performing public responsibilities under their contracts, did indeed fall under the open records law and had to turn over the documents.
An ordinary taxpayer probably would not be able to hire an attorney and spend the time and money necessary to get the records.
• READER’S FORUM on news-press.com: How does closing public meetings or public records harm the public? What are the legitimate exceptions to open records or meetings? Why do people seek such exemptions?
ON THE WEB
For information about Florida’s open government laws, visit the First Amendment Foundation at www.floridafaf.org