I try to be a journalist and not get involved in advocating for any particular point of view. But in situations where the public’s right to know and accountability of elected officials are involved, I can get worked up. I am worked up now.
It’s about House Bill (HB) 1338. The piece of legislation in the Indiana General Assembly started out as a statute providing guidance to those running local government meetings on how to handle disruptions. It also clarifies laws on trespassing, a response to some people calling themselves “auditors,” providing legal language on what constitutes “criminal trespass.” Those provisions do not raise concern for me.
What does concern me is an amendment added in House Committee. I wrote a commentary on this March 3rd, available at this link. I expressed hope in that piece cooler heads would prevail among a majority of our Statehouse lawmakers. Let’s just say that did not happen.
HB 1338 has now passed the Indiana House and Senate and is headed to the desk of Governor Eric Holcomb. Here is what concerns be about this measure.
It would do away with the four-year terms for the Public Access Counselor. That position would serve “at the pleasure of the governor,” meaning he/she could be dismissed at any time without cause.
Another provision of HB 1338 would instruct the Public Access Counselor, when issuing advisory opinions, “may consider only the plain text of the public access laws and valid Indiana court opinions.” A major role of the Public Access Counselor is to provide advisory opinions on issues not specifically spelled out in state statutes and have no clear authority from the courts.
There is also language exempting certain committees appointed by elected bodies from provisions of the Open Meetings Law.
Why are lawmakers so fearful of a Public Access Counselor, which issues advisory opinions?
Reporter Tom Davies of State Affairs quoted Amelia McClure, executive director of the Hoosier State Press Association, saying HB 1338 “functionally guts” the access counselor’s ability to consider the context of a situation unless it has been directly addressed by the Legislature or court.
Reporter Davies also quotes Representative Ed Delany, (D) Indianapolis, as saying the elimination of the Public Access Counselor’s four-year term would expose the Public Access Counselor to political pressures.
“We’re setting it up so that they can be fired if they don’t say exactly what we want,” DeLaney said. “It seems to me that this is a real step backwards for public access.”
Davies notes in his story that the Public Access Counselor’s office was established in 1999 “after a review by several newspapers found widespread violations of the public access laws by numerous local governments across the state.”
Based on a number of news reports, it appears Republicans are pushing this legislation. I would argue it is bad for both political parties, and all ideologies, when an office like the Indiana Public Access Counselor is gutted, as the state press association asserts.
Open meetings and open government are key to citizens knowing what is happening with their local elected bodies. Indiana has one of the lowest rates of voter participation in the nation. Legislation like this will not help.
If you agree with me that HB 1338 is a bad idea, call or e-mail Governor Eric Holcomb, at this link. Urge home to veto HB 1338. So far, the governor has not indicated what he will do with this bill.
This is the first time in my 13 years of blogging where I have taken a stand on a particular piece of legislation. As a long-time journalist, this cuts to the heart of media and citizen involvement. That’s why I am worked up about HB1338.