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Six years ago, when Sen. Karen Peterson of Wilmington was elected, she discovered she had no support in her attempt to make the state Legislature subject to the Freedom of Information Act.
But, in the last legislative session in June, she came a little closer. Senate Bill 4, or the open government bill, had 14 co-sponsors and was two signatures away from being petitioned to the Senate floor.
In January, when Legislature reconvenes, Peterson said she will reintroduce legislation in her quest to make General Assembly documents available, not only to voters but also to legislators.
“The General Assembly is not a public body. We might as well be the DuPont Company,” Peterson said.
Peterson addressed the Sussex County League of Women Voters Wednesday, Sept. 10.
Dr. Margaret McKay, a retired political science professor, discussed how to find public records. She also talked about open meeting laws and what residents can expect from any agency that spends public money. The problem with the Legislature, says McKay, is that while many Delaware towns have meeting minutes posted online, the paper trail for Dover lawmakers is impossible to follow.
FOIA history
In 1966, the federal government passed the Freedom of Information Act to make many documents and deliberations available to the public, including minutes, notes and email correspondence and contracts.
In 1977, Delaware passed a public records law, or sunshine law, but in 1985, the General Assembly added one sentence: “The public body shall not include the General Assembly.” That sentence was passed in a bill, which allowed lawmakers to conduct public business behind closed doors.
Peterson said in her first year in the Senate, she introduced a bill to repeal the sentence that exempts the General Assembly from the Freedom of Information Act. That measure died in committee.
In 2005, she reintroduced another measure that died in a desk-drawer veto.
In her third attempt at prying open the General Assembly, Peterson had 14 co-sponsors and nine signatures for Senate Bill 4.
Despite the bill’s defeat, Peterson said legislative support is growing, and she urged the audience to ask candidates if they support an open government bill. Just as important, she asked if legislators would be willing to sign a petition to get the bill the floor for a vote.
“Six years ago, the open government question wasn’t asked by any organization. Today, the question is asked by most organizations,” Peterson said.
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