GREENFIELD — “Transparency” is a catch word nearly every candidate spouts as part of his or her political platform. But they have to put their mind where their mouth is when it comes to actually knowing what state law mandates about giving the citizens who pay their salaries access to what they do.
The Access to Public Records Act details the government records that are available for inspecting or copying by the public and how to go about requesting them. A companion law, the Indiana Open Door Law, sets rules for meetings of governing bodies.
Educational opportunities abound for officials in local government to learn these laws. Advocates for open government say abiding by the state’s transparency laws is a matter of officials caring enough to take the time to learn about them.
But many do not.
Stephen Key, executive director of the Hoosier State Press Association and an expert on transparency issues, said training sessions are available for many sectors of local government. The state’s attorney general, public access counselor and the HSPA also give seminars on transparency.
“It’s like anything else. Sometimes, the ones that might need the training the most are the ones that don’t bother to show up,” Key said.
And even if they do learn about the laws, forgetfulness or ambiguity may cause a public official to blunder. A secret ballot vote for city council president was suggested by a new city councilman this year, for example. Gary McDaniel said he went to the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns’ boot camp for newly elected officials, but with many sessions to choose from, he did not attend the one on transparency.
That’s when, Key said, officials may need to rely on attorneys for advice.
Nevertheless, “The presumption should always be openness,” Key said.
City council members, some of whom have held that office for more than one term, say January’s secret vote was an honest mistake, and they’re trying to abide by the laws. The council conducted a proper open vote for president at a later meeting.
“Can I quote the law verbatim? No, I cannot,” said newly elected Councilman John Patton. “Do I understand the intent of the law? Yes, I do.”
Local officials are in organizations that include sessions on the two laws. In addition to the IACT sessions for newly elected city and town officials, Clerk-Treasurer Larry Breese said there’s a group for clerks and treasurers that also promotes transparency.
Hancock County Auditor Robin Lowder said she gains knowledge through the Association of Indiana Counties. Whenever she has a question, she researches it or calls the county attorney.
“I educate my staff,” she said. “In my office, they know what’s public information and what isn’t.”
What makes it a little easier, she said, is that nearly everything coming out of the auditor’s office is public.
Breese said his staff also learns about openness through various sessions, but he also acts as a sounding board for his staff.
But with all of the organizations teaching about the public’s right to know, it’s voluntary whether officials go to sessions or load up a webinar to learn about the state’s access laws.
“Unfortunately, there are some people that don’t care to be educated,” Breese said.
It is ultimately the officeholder’s responsibility to know what should be made publicly available, said Keith Robinson, past president and current board member for the Indiana Coalition for Open Government, a nonprofit advocacy group based in Indianapolis.
Unfortunately for record-seekers, the officeholder is rarely the one who answers the phone or mans the front desk.
“It’s that first entry point where there’s generally the lack of knowledge,” Robinson said.
Support staff members are not always educated on transparency laws, and more often than not will err on the side of protecting their jobs and the office where they work, Robinson said.
“That person doesn’t want to be disciplined for giving out a record,” Robinson said.
In some cases, one record can contain both information that is prohibited from being released – such as a Social Security number – and information that is disclosable.
Officeholders should know the difference and be able to take action to withhold the private information in order to release the public portion of the record, Robinson added.
For Greenfield city government, the buck often stops at the clerk-treasurer’s office in city hall, Breese said, so he feels that it’s important to know the transparency laws. Still, with federal regulations, especially those related to health information of employees, it’s also important to know when to not give out information, he said.
Several local officials say they agree with the new law sponsored by state Sen. Beverly Gard, R-Greenfield, that fines officials who knowingly violate public access laws.
“I don’t think local government should be hiding anything,” Greenfield City Councilman Jason Horning said.
For Eastern Hancock Superintendent Randy Harris, the fines simply make sense.
“I think if a person gets to that point to get fined, they are knowingly and willingly choosing to (withhold information), and the fine is appropriate,” he said.
Harris said schools, too, have training on how to abide by transparency laws. School board members have the option of attending sessions through the state’s school boards association.
Harris keeps a one-page informational sheet about the laws in case any questions arise.
Closed or executive meetings are allowed under the Open Door Law, but only in a limited number of circumstances, like discussing contracts or certain personnel matters. Those in such meetings are bound to an honor system to stay on topic. Harris said the EH school board strives to do that.
He said when the board holds an executive session, members try to stay on track. If one goes off subject, another member will remind him that the meeting is an executive session and to keep with the topic at hand.
Tony Fargo, vice president of the Indiana Coalition of Open Government, said he would never say there are enough educational opportunities about the state’s transparency laws.
Under the new state law on fines for local officials, the money collected, if any, will go into a fund for the state’s public access counselor to teach more on the topic.
Fargo said the new law was a good move for the state, especially because it sends a strong message about the importance of transparency. But he said more education could always be used, not only for government officials, but for the general public.
“Access is an often overlooked right we have as citizens,” Fargo said. “I think many people don’t really think about access laws until they actually find that they need them.”
Staff writer Noelle M. Steele contributed to this report.