In Alabama, it can be nearly impossible for a private citizen, member of the press, or advocate to get their hands on government records and documents. While current Alabama law establishes that “every citizen has a right to inspect and take a copy of any public writing of this state,” it can often be extremely difficult or unaffordable to exercise this right. Government records are produced in part with tax-payers’ money and belong to the people. Having accessible records that document the actions and functions of government promotes transparency and accountability to its citizenry. While some government agencies and local governments make their records accessible, others deny requests without cause, charge exorbitant fees, or outright ignore requests from the public. Currently, the only way to challenge access to a denial of records is to sue.
Senate Bill 165, the Alabama Public Records Act, helps guarantee that government records are accessible and affordable to citizens, the press, and watchdog organizations. The bill accomplishes a number of important things. It creates reasonable time-lines for governments to respond to records requests. It implements reasonable costs for acquiring records. It establishes which records should be confidential to protect privacy and security. It sets fines for state agencies and local governments for failure to comply with the Public Records Act. And as a further safeguard of citizens’ rights it creates the position of Public Access Counselor who decides if a records request denial was warranted or unjustified.
We are pleased to be able to provide video of the testimony from a member of our League, Carol Mosely, at the committee hearing on March 31st. The recording offers a window into the workings of our legislative process. We hear from organizations affected by the proposed legislation give statements concerning the bill. We hear questions and discussion from our legislators, and the next steps of incorporating amendments.
This legislation matters because without SB165 we can’t check on what our government is up to easily and in a timely manner. Without SB165 citizens are left without a way to hold officials accountable and cannot be assured that our government is working for us and not for monied interests who can afford pricey lobbyists. For example, better access to records would help ensure that the reapportionment/redistricting process is transparent and responsive to public input so that districts are drawn in a manner where each person’s vote has equal impact. In other words, it would guard against gerrymandering. The LWVAL supports SB165 and we encourage you to show your state representatives that you support this legislation too by calling them (look up your legislator’s contact information here) and urging them to vote yes on this bill when it comes to a vote.
