Let the sunshine in
I moved to
Sadly, the
times have changed and not for the better. Each year that passes, citizens
continue to lose their ability to access and obtain the public information to
which they are entitled. The press must
wage battles under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain
information which enjoys no privacy protection.
Citizens give up in disgust as they try, unsuccessfully, to assert their
own rights. They are burdened with
delays, diversions, arbitrary decisions and lack of attention.
Park County
Government has thrown up its own walls, and the obstacles continue to
mount. County agendas contain a disclaimer that meeting times are approximate, and that items may be changed or deleted up to 24 hours of the scheduled meeting. While this meets Colorado legal requirements, it creates a chilling effect for people who want to attend hearings and must make arrangements well ahead of time to do so.
Projects kept
too close to the vest become public relations nightmares because officials
notice meetings poorly and come inadequately prepared with specifics. In the final analysis, this makes the job
more complicated, requiring additional resources and manpower.
Keeping
residents in the dark only serves to reinforce the notion that government is
being heavy-handed in its actions. It
causes people to question who government is serving and why.
Government
owes it to citizens to keep them informed.
In this technological day and age, there simply is no excuse. Government must be
a team player in the overall process of governance.
Open government is the best government. My pledge to the people of Park County is to improve the two-way flow of information, open government’s doors to the people, and let them know they have at least one commissioner who is accessible and available.
As your next District 1 County Commissioner, the sun will shine once again.