Transparency bill has loophole
Hochul signs measure to expand document access, but more work is needed, group says
A bill signed this week by Gov. Kathy Hochul that is intended to increase transparency in local and state governments by expanding access to documents before public meetings leaves a loophole and more work to do, according to the good government group that pushed for the legislation.
The bill, which is to go into effect in a month, requires governments in New York at least 24 hours before a public meeting to make related documents available, at least by request, “to the extent practicable.” New York Coalition For Open Government called it the “first major change to the Open Meetings Law in 10 years.”
Previously, a 24-hour window was not a part of the law, meaning governments could post documents right before a meeting began. It also had included that the documents could be provided “as determined by the agency or the department.”
“It is sad that obtaining a 24-hour requirement is a victory but that is how bad New York’s Open Meetings Law is,” said Paul Wolf, president of New York Coalition For Open Government.
The language that remains, “to the extent practicable,” is still problematic, according to Wolf.
“We really need to get rid of the ‘to the extent practicable’ language,” he said. “There is no practicable reason why a public body with a website cannot scan and post online the board member packet for their meetings.”
The bill, according to Wolf, came to be after he reached out to Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-scarsdale, about shortfalls his group believe weaken the Open Meetings Law.
Paulin later introduced the bill, which included a memo noting Wolf ’s group found that six of 41 local governments they examined did not post public meeting documents.
The law’s phrasing of “to the extent practicable,” has “created loopholes and a way for agencies to bypass this requirement” of making documents available to the public, according to the bill’s memo. Nonetheless, the bill, passed in June by the Legislature, did not strike that language.
Hochul, during the bill signing Tuesday, reiterated a goal for her administration to be the “most transparent administration in the history of the state of New York.”
“At minimum, I believe that every government agency in the state of New York that’s subjected to the Open Meetings Law should provide this information, because the best constituents we have are informed constituents,” Hochul said. “They have a right to know on what’s on the agenda.”
State Sen. Anna M. Kaplan, D-north Hills, called public access to documents before a meeting “an opportunity for meaningful participation in the process.”
“Unfortunately too many public bodies in New York state are using a weakness in our current law to skirt this important requirement,” Kaplan said in a statement.