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Why do governor, Legislature operate in secret?
When asked whether he would support broadening Michigan's Freedom of Information Act laws to include his office and the Legislature, Gov. Rick Snyder told the Free Press: "As governor, it's good to have people you can talk to ... when you're coming up with brainstorming ideas or thought processes, talking about difficult issues."
Yes, we're sure that's true. And if you're the manager of a private enterprise, it's a valid rationale for keeping your business private. But elected officials should have no such presumption of privacy. Public records are just that — public. FOIA laws allow reasonable exemptions, for pending litigation or to protect private information. But a blanket exemption for two branches of government, most specifically the two branches that control every cent of the state budget, is just ridiculous.
Yet, that's how Michigan rolls: The Legislature and the governor's office aren't required to comply with FOIA laws, unlike governors and legislatures in most of the rest of the country. Local elected officials are also covered by FOIA laws, and it's ridiculous to suggest that the governor of Michigan engages in negotiations more complex and sensitive than, say, the mayor of Detroit — whose records are available to the public under FOIA.
Why is this so important? Think of the negotiations over Michigan's prison food service contract. Some critics feared that moving the talks under the aegis of the governor's office would mean documents related to the controversial contract wouldn't be subject to FOIA. Without information obtainable through the statute, it's difficult for members of the public or the news media to gauge the value and success of such programs — or to make sound decisions at the ballot box, based on elected officials' track records.
Government is here to serve the people. Government's business is the people's business, authorized and paid for by each and every one of us. It's a concept described in the same state statute that, in a whopping illogical inconsistency, later exempts the governor and Legislature from its dictates: "It is the public policy of this state that all persons ... are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts of those who represent them as public officials and public employees. ... The people shall be informed so that they may fully participate in the democratic process."
Transparency is the first step toward accountability.
Michigan's FOIA law could be changed, if legislators would act. Legislation that would expand Michigan's FOIA laws to cover the governor and Legislature have been introduced, but tend to go nowhere.
It's time for that to change.