Editorial: It's a time to reaffirm, not relax, rules on government transparency
On April 13, the Illinois Municipal League issued a news release claiming that units of government in the state "remain in limbo" because state Attorney General Kwame Raoul had not provided "clarification or action" regarding their responsibilities under the state's Freedom of Information Action during the COVID-19 crisis.
How's this for clarification - provided four days earlier in a seven-page opinion by the attorney general's office?
"All public bodies must be aware that the General Assembly has already determined that it is a fundamental obligation of government to operate openly and provide public records as expediently and efficiently as possible in compliance with FOIA.'"
The Municipal League and many of its members want the attorney general or Gov. J.B. Pritzker to suspend FOIA rules so that government bodies don't have to comply with the legal requirement to respond within five days to requests from the public for public documents.
The origins of their concern may seem understandable. Many governments are operating under unusual conditions that include reduced staffing, reassigned duties or remote working requirements. But those conditions do not absolve public officials of the responsibility to provide information to the public about their activities openly and in a timely fashion. The governor's executive orders establishing conditions of the state's lockdown policy specifically require public bodies to determine their "essential" functions and provide resources to accomplish them.
Moreover, even though staffs may be working remotely, the vast majority of documents sought are available electronically - or should be - and the hardship provisions within the law can accommodate those that aren't.
State law on public information could hardly be clearer that the "fundamental obligation" to provide public records is an essential function of government. The pandemic crisis does not diminish that obligation; indeed, it makes it even more urgent.
Social distancing and other necessary health practices have made it more difficult than ever for citizens to monitor the actions of public officials. Governments are considering various actions related to business operations and individual behaviors. Trillions of federal dollars are flowing into the state and local communities.
Governments at all levels play a role in protecting our health and safeguarding our local economies. The public has a direct vested interest in monitoring how well their governments fulfill those life-and-death responsibilities - and in a timely fashion, not just a retrospective assessment months or years from now.
In short, This is no time to relax the rules on transparency and accountability. This is the time to reaffirm them.
As the attorney general's opinion states, governments have numerous options for denying FOIA requests or delaying a response if they pose an undue hardship. And, the law certainly allows and encourages governments and agencies seeking information to work together to accommodate each other in difficult circumstances.
But in too many cases, some governments already strive to shield their business from the public; an order relaxing their duty to comply with a fundamental obligation identified in state statute would just give them permission to operate in secrecy.
In a time of national crisis, the need for information is paramount. Illinois law recognizes this. The attorney general has affirmed it. The governor, and all responsible public officials, must resist efforts to let any doors close on open government.