Cape Coral Daily Breeze

Let the 'Sunshine' in

“Sunshine Week” kicks off tomorrow with Sunshine Sunday.

No, it has nothing to do with the ongoing “Celebrate Cape Coral” events nor is the day or week being celebrated or touted by any local government entity.

That’s too bad.

Florida’s Sunshine Laws — the statutes that mandate that public records be public and that government meetings be open to anyone who wants to attend — are the public’s best protection against back-door dealings and political corruption.

The Florida legislature has taken its share of bites out of these protections over the years — and are set to consider numerous distasteful proposals this year as well — but the statutes still are the broadest nationwide, vested in the state’s constitution. How do these laws benefit the public?

• You have the legal right to documents submitted by developers planning a project in your neighborhood.

• You have the legal right to financial documents relating to projects paid for with your tax dollars.

• You have the legal right to check whether the teacher instructing your child is certified in the subject he or she is teaching.

• You have the legal right to check court records to determine if your child’s bus driver has been cited for traffic infractions or a DUI.

• You have a right to check records that will tell you if your neighbor, your child’s coach or scout leader, your babysitter or the nice man who asked you to dinner is listed as a sexual offender or predator.

• You have the right to records that will tell you if your doctor or dentist has had malpractice claims or complaints filed and whether their licenses are “clean.” The same goes for your contractor, Realtor or anyone else in a profession licensed by the state.

• You have the right to attend any meeting at which two elected officials from the same board are discussing an issue that may come to a vote. Elected officials and those appointed to public boards may not meet privately nor may they discuss by phone or e-mail issues on the table to build consensus “in the shade” or horse trade votes to get pet projects passed. They can’t use staff members as go-betweens, either.

Because the media gives so much attention to the Government-in-the-Sunshine laws, there is sometimes a perception that the laws are designed for media benefit. Not so — members of the press have no more rights than the public under these laws though newspapers and television stations tend to be more outspoken when these laws are bent or broken.

We invite you to mark Sunshine Sunday with us. Tip a glass of orange juice to the other reason Florida is known as the Sunshine State. And join us in vigilance against efforts to cloud your right to know. Let the “Sunshine” in.

What's there to hide?

The cloudy thinking that seems to befuddle certain members of the Lee County school board every time someone questions the actions of Superintendent James Browder hit a stormy low this week.

Board member Robert Chilmonik, whose district includes Cape Coral, requested public records pertaining to financial decisions made or authorized by Dr. Browder. Mr. Chilmonik asked for copies of expenditures of $24,999 or less, $24,999 being the cutoff point for those not requiring board approval.

Mr. Chilmonik said he asked for the documents because he has received a number of calls from taxpayers. He also said he was just trying to do the job voters hired him to do. Residents — and Chilmonik — began asking whether Mr. Browder was abusing the cutoff line after he signed an intent-to-buy contract for The Golf Club for a future school complex, pledging $24,999. The purchase, which carried a price tag of $26 million, had not come before the school board nor had it been previously discussed in public.

Abutting property owners cried foul.

Vehemently.

Numerous others joined in, saying the deal smacked of back-room shenanigans designed to keep taxpayers in the dark on the controversial proposal until the ink was dry. A flurry of who-knew-what-when accusations then effectively killed the deal.

Four school board members apparently learned little from the debacle as they continue to think it’s OK to keep the public in the dark about matters of public interest by ignoring actions that tap dance around Florida’s “Sunshine,” or open meetings and public records laws.

The board did a little dancing itself this week when four members got involved in Mr. Chilmonik’s public records request, telling Dr. Browder he was under no obligation to honor the request as one made by a public official. Instead, Mr. Chilmonik could “file a Freedom of Information” request like any other private citizen and pay for his documents which, the board said, would require costly research time to gather. We’re dumfounded.

One, Florida has very broad public records laws and the documents in question plainly fall within the scope of those “Government-in-the-Sunshine” laws.

Two, “Freedom of Information” requests are not required to view or obtain records held by local government agencies within the state, including the school district. The law states that all you have to do — public official or private citizen — is ask for them. You don’t have to put your request in writing. You don’t have to fill out or sign a form. You don’t have to tell the records custodian why you want them. You don’t even have to give your name.

The public does need to pay for the records requested but that is limited to the actual cost of copying or, in the case of a request involving a lot of staff time or research, the actual cost of the time involved.

Mr. Chilmonik says if the other board members aren’t interested in knowing how many times Dr. Browder has used his expenditure authority and for what, he still is and he’s willing to pay for the records out of his own pocket. It’s estimated the records, including staff time, will cost around $800. Kudos to Mr. Chilmonik. Perhaps the other parties that have now jumped on the bandwagon and asked for those same records will pass the hat to help defray the research portion of the costs. Given the board’s reaction, those records should be an interesting read.

And speaking of interesting reads, we suggest school board members Steven Teuber, Elinor Scricca, Jeanne Dozier and Jane Kuckel spend some time marking “Sunshine Sunday” with Florida’s “Government-in-the- Sunshine” manual, paying particular attention to the public records portion. We’re sure there are some unread copies laying around the district offices collecting dust.

Reproduced courtesy of the Cape Coral Daily Breeze.
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