When Local Government Conceals Its Wrongdoing, Taxpayers Bear the Burden
Local government officials are intent on concealing their malfeasance. It's time to change that.
In a society that prides itself on the principles of democracy and transparency, the increasing trend of local governments concealing information from the public is alarming. More concerning is the hefty price tag attached to these actions, a bill footed not by the officials responsible but by the taxpayers themselves.
Recent cases across the United States highlight a disturbing pattern: when journalists and news organizations are forced to sue for access to public records, it's the community members who ultimately pay the cost of government officials' reluctance to uphold transparency.
In San Jose, California, taxpayers shelled out $500,000 after a judge ruled that former Mayor Sam Liccardo had used private communications to conduct city business, intentionally avoiding public scrutiny. This case is not isolated. Worcester, Massachusetts, and Las Vegas, Nevada, have seen similar scenarios, with taxpayers covering legal fees and fines totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars due to local governments' failure to provide public records.
"Taxpayers are on the hook now for half a million dollars because city officials didn’t follow the law," lamented Ramona Giwargis, co-founder and CEO of the San José Spotlight.
The fiscal year 2022-2023 saw nearly 5,400 records requests in San Jose alone, highlighting the growing demand for government transparency. Yet, despite the clear public interest, resistance from local officials persists.
David Cuillier, director of the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project, notes a significant drop in the fulfillment of public records requests, a decline from 63% in 2010 to a mere 31% in 2022. This decline is not due to a lack of interest from the public but rather an increasing adeptness among government entities in evading disclosure.
The legal battles fought by journalists and news organizations are often the last resort in a struggling fight for transparency. These lawsuits reveal a systemic issue within our local governments: an aversion to transparency that not only undermines the principles of democracy but also imposes a financial burden on the taxpayers.
Further compounding the issue is the decline of local news outlets, which means those who would normally root out the truth in their local governments are becoming more rare. "It is a shame that governmental entities so often spend public money to fight against transparency,” said Ben Lipman, Chief Legal Officer at the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
In some states, legislatures are passing laws aimed at making it even harder to access public information, citing a supposed rise in the number of requests. The laws limit or even penalize those making public records requests deemed to be excessive. But, it seems pretty obvious that their actual objective is to avoid transparency.
The ongoing struggle for transparency brings up some serious questions about accountability among government officials, who have a remarkable penchant for avoiding consequences for their corruption. But what is even more galling is the fact that it is taxpayers who bear the brunt when local governments are successfully sued for refusing to comply with public records requests.
The reason why local governments get away with such levels of secrecy is because they know most people aren’t paying attention to what is happening in their own backyards.
This has to change.
Chances are, your local officials are engaging in all kinds of corruption knowing they will get away with it because of the lack of spotlight shown on their activities. When people become more involved in their local communities, they can work to put a stop to corruption.
Some have advocated for stronger policies aimed at compelling governmennt officials to be transparent about the goings on in their daily activities. This is the right move. But such an idea will never come to fruition until we the people start taking a more active role in policing our local government officials.