March 15, 2011

Bill will add to public's knowledge about government employee records

The NCPA on Tuesday came out strongly in support of The Government Transparency Act of 2011, and praised the sponsors and co-sponsors for their support of open government, especially during a week dedicated to examining open government laws around the nation.

“Sunshine Week is all about shedding light on local, state and federal governments,” said Beth Grace, executive director of the North Carolina Press Association. “This legislation does that and more – it brings secret information about those we hire to run our governments into the light, And it gives the people a look into their own government offices in a way we have never seen before.”

The new bill covers state, county and city employees, public authorities, and local schools. It seeks to:

• Restore the requirement that reasons be given for all promotions, suspensions, demotions, transfers or separation
• Requires release of performance records
• Broaden the situations in which attorney fees can be awarded to winning plaintiffs, making it automatic for winners of all open meetings AND open records lawsuits.

North Carolina has had one of the most secretive personnel records laws in the nation, Grace said. Most other states have for years allowed much more access to records pertaining to those the public pays to run its government agencies. Last year, the omnibus ethics bill that was passed at the last minute of the last day of the Legislative session opened new access to pay and employment histories and dismissal letters, and required disclosure of all suspensions or demotions (but did not require an explanation for those actions).

The proposed new Transparency Act is important to everyone – from parents of schoolchildren to taxpayers to newspaper reporters.

“There is nothing out of line about wanting to know as much as we can about those who teach our kids, run our local governments and do business in the name of the public,” Grace said. “Public employees are public servants and most recognize the strong relationship that must exist between their work and our trust.”

NCPA is one of the oldest newspaper advocacy organizations in the nation. Founded in 1873, it lobbies for newspapers and open government, provides free right-to-know legal advice and access brochures to newspapers and their readers, offers professional development opportunities for members and administers one of the largest editorial contests in the nation.

Contact: Beth Grace, executive director, North Carolina Press Association, beth@ncpress.com or 919-789-2090; or John Bussian, NCPA legislative liaison and FOI counsel, jbussian@aol.com or 919- 829-4900