IP Democracy: Technology Tests Sunshine Laws

The Miami Herald has this article today on how “sunshine” laws, laws that are designed to make the public policy making process more open to view, are being tested by technology, instant messaging and cell phone calls in particular. In Florida, which has one of the oldest and most extensive sets of sunshine laws in the country, questions are being raised about whether public officials are making all their actions transparent.

Under state law, a public record is any document made or received by a government agency in connection with the transaction of official business and must be made available for citizens to review. But as people increasingly use computers instead of paper to communicate, the definition of a public record is changing.

Even emails, which come close to a paper record traditionally covered by sunshine laws, are missing from some public records. One legislative staffer deleted hundreds of emails in the last days of the state legislature’s session in 2004, saying that the missives didn’t pertain to state government. But an examination of some of those deleted emails showed that many did in fact deal with state business.

One interesting item: Earlier this year Jacksonville’s mayor wanted to set up a system so that the city council’s members could text message each other, but that concept was nixed because text messaging isn’t transparent.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on January 22, 2006 2:37 PM to IP Democracy