Sunshine Week

This week is "National Sunshine Week," which occurs each March to coincide with the birthday of James Madison and Freedom of Information Day. It is a time for discussions and programs on the subject that government functions best when it operates in the open.

Most Marylanders would probably think that our state is among the best for open meetings but the opposite is true. As mentioned in a Baltimore Sun op-ed today, "A 2015 report by the State Integrity Project ranks Maryland 41st out of 50 states, with a grade of "F" for access to public information. This is an embarrassment, and Marylanders deserve better."

There are still too many violations of the Open Meetings Act, including a recent one that I brought and won against the MoCo Board of Elections. Too many people, including members of the MoCo Board of  Education, said they consider this to be a matter of "technicalities."

The public has a right to watch just about all government meetings and to obtain just about all government documents. There are a few exceptions but in practice many government bodies act as if the rule should be secrecy rather than openness.

Several bills were introduced in the Maryland General Assembly this year to strengthen the Open Meetings Act, but they were opposed by those with influence in Annapolis. This is a sorry situation.