Uphold Public’s Right to Know

By the News-Register
We continue to be astounded, with some regularity, at the arrogance with which some government officials view those who vote them into office, pay their salaries and allow them to spend enormous sums of money: the public. Fortunately, West Virginians have strong safeguards against such arrogance — and the courts traditionally have adopted a strict philosophy in enforcing them.

It happened last week in Nitro, W.Va. There, a resident had asked city government for some information regarding city council meeting minutes and details about the salary paid to the town’s treasurer. She filed a freedom of information act request for the information.

But Nitro officials dragged their feet to the point that the citizen took them to court. There, Kanawha County Circuit Judge Charlie King ripped into the municipal officials. He denied a motion by the city’s attorney to dismiss the citizen’s case, at one point noting that Nitro officials might not be able to provide documents precisely as specified by the citizen — but were perfectly capable of giving her the information she sought.

“I know what FOIA is meant to do — and we’re going to do it,” King vowed.

Fortunately, the judge’s reaction wasn’t unusual. Again, the courts have taken freedom of information act requests and those involving open meetings very, very seriously in West Virginia.

Though the case in point occurred in Nitro, not far from Charleston, it is of interest to every West Virginian.

And it ought to serve as one more in a long series of reminders that government exists to serve its constituents — not to dominate them.

West Virginians are entitled to be given access to the overwhelming majority of documents and other information with which their government deals, with rare exceptions such as paperwork involved in ongoing criminal investigations. We are entitled to access to meetings of government bodies at which action involving us is taken. Period.

The sooner each and everyone in government gets that through his or her head, the better.