Northwest Florida Daily News
Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

During the past week and a half, as controversy rumbled through Fort Walton Beach City Hall, readers could visit the Daily News’ Web site and peruse all 31 pages of an official report on city employees’ fractured “working relationships.” They could even read letters written by an angry Finance Director Lisa Absher — the focus of the brouhaha — to City Council members, and take a look at an ethics complaint she had filed.

It’s likely that without Florida’s commitment to open government and open records, none of those documents would be available to average citizens.

Florida’s citizens are, after all, the prime beneficiaries of the state’s “sunshine” laws, which protect our right to know what government is (or isn’t) doing.

State laws enshrining the ideals of open government date back to the early 20th century. The Sunshine Amendment, which changed the Florida Constitution to declare all government meetings and records open to the public unless specifically closed by the Legislature, was approved in 1992.

Even today, some government agencies are reluctant to let citizens see what their officeholders are doing and where their tax dollars are going. That fact alone underscores the value of open government: If it’s important enough for bureaucrats to hide, it’s important enough for taxpayers to know about.

Two examples from the past year:

Last spring, the Walton County Sheriff’s Office initially refused to release information about a South Walton High School coach who had been suspended and was under investigation. The Daily News pressed the issue. Finally, the Sheriff’s Office released an 18-page incident report. The coach eventually was charged with numerous counts of sexual misconduct.

Last August, a bridge collapse in Minneapolis sparked nationwide interest in bridge safety. Reporters soon learned that, in Florida, bridge inspection reports have been withheld from public scrutiny since 2002. Lawmakers thought the reports might be useful to terrorists, so they had the documents locked away.

Obviously, people in Florida need to know when a school employee is thought to have abused students and whether the bridges they drive across are safe. It is essential that government records, as well as the government meetings and government agencies that produce them, remain open and accessible to all citizens.

Reproduced courtesy of the Northwest Florida Daily News.
Other FSNE member papers can use this.
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