Senior centers must open records to public

Members of the Cape Henlopen Senior Center want to know how much their executive director is paid and how qualified she is for the job.

Those are simple questions, information that should be available to anyone, especially to members of a largely state-funded organization that exists to serve to the state’s older residents.

The senior center disagrees. It has so far insisted it is not subject to the state’s Freedom of Information Act and is not required to provide the information.

The Attorney General’s Office has reviewed the question, finding evidence to show the records should be public. Among other things, taxpayers paid more than $200,000 last year to fund center activities.

Instead of complying with the request, senior center officials hired an attorney; he says nothing about the center makes it a public body whose records should be open.

All of this arises after the center’s longtime executive director stepped down. After three decades with the same hand at the helm, transition was likely to be difficult; any new director was likely to face problems. But that’s even more reason for openness, transparency and a public audit of how funds are spent.

Why wouldn’t the center’s leaders want the public to know how much it pays employees and how qualified they are for their jobs?

Beyond that, why haven’t state officials demanded annual audits of all senior centers?

Refusing to provide information creates an atmosphere of suspicion and hostility that are the antithesis of what the public demands from government and government-funded agencies. Hiring an attorney to defend secrecy is an inexcusable waste of money that should be spent serving the center’s members.

Our older residents are among our most vulnerable citizens. Taxpayer-supported agencies that serve them should be audited annually and their records must be open and transparent so members and the people who love them can be confident the centers are run properly and the needs of older residents are met.