Senate may adopt presumption of openness By Tara Halbritter, Community News Service PIERRE (CNS) – A measure that would establish a presumption of openness for government records in the state was approved by the Senate State Affairs Committee, 6-2, on Feb. 6. “The issue of openness is one we would all comfortably embrace if we just understood how it works,” said Sen. Nancy Turbak Berry, D-Watertown. She is the prime sponsor of Senate Bill 186 and she served on the attorney general's task force on government openness in 2007. The bill begins with establishing a presumption that all records kept by a governmental entity are open to the public. It then lists several categories of information held by government, such as personal information, which would be confidential. “We believe Senate Bill 189 is a good, straightforward, balanced approach to open government in South Dakota,” said David Bordewyk, lobbyist for the S.D. Newspaper Association.In testimony before the Senate State Affairs Committee, Bordewyk addressed some concerns of committee members. He said, “If Senate Bill 189 is signed into law, I don't think computers would crash, I don't think mobs of people would overrun government agencies or courthouses rifling through the filing cabinets.” Turbak Berry said, “The biggest problem is a lack of understanding.” She said there are already countless protections in place under both state and federal law for private information such as Social Security numbers, medical information and concealed weapon permits. Jeff Bloomberg of the S.D. Bureau of Administration testified against Senate Bill 189. Bloomberg said any bill aimed at opening records in the state should be understandable to the public, clear to government employees and should protect private information.He criticized the bill for not including a definition of “public agency” and for not placing any civil or criminal punishment on officials that give out information not meant for public viewing. Bordewyk disagreed and said he thinks the legislation creates a good safeguard to stop the release of any information deemed confidential. Senate Bill 189 goes to the full Senate for approval next week. A second open government bill was significantly amended and approved by the Senate State Affairs Committee, 6-2. Senate Bill 186 was introduced by Sen. David Knudson, R-Sioux Falls. In its original form, the bill would have expanded the definition of open records in South Dakota and created new exceptions for closed-door meetings by public boards. It also created a process for settling disputes concerning access to government records. After undergoing extensive revision, the bill now contains only the records access dispute mechanism.The dispute resolution process calls for the S.D. Office of Hearing Examiners to rule on complaints filed by anyone who believes they were wrongfully denied access to a record. Senate Bill 186 will also be considered by the full Senate next week.
