TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - Kansas officials have joined a state news organization in pushing for a special two-person unit within the attorney general’s office devoted solely to investigating open meetings and open records complaints.
Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office is in favor of a bill to create the special unit, as is the Kansas Association of Counties and the Kansas Press Association.
Doug Anstaett, KPA executive director, told a legislative committee Tuesday that housing an open government unit within the attorney general’s office would send a message that such complaints are a high priority, the Topeka Capital-Journal reported (https://bit.ly/1hLn25V ).
“It’s a bill that elevates the importance of open government to a new level,” Anstaett said.
The House Judiciary Committee took no action on the legislation, House Bill 2346, pending additional information from the press association.
Anstaett said he could provide several examples of potential violations of the Kansas Open Records Act and Kansas Open Meetings Act by governmental bodies.
“They are widespread,” Anstaett said. “It seems we continue to make the same mistakes over and over.”
Under current law, media members or citizens who believe such violations have occurred can file a lawsuit against the offending parties or refer complaints to the local district or county attorney.
They also can go straight to the attorney general’s office, which may pursue its own lawsuit if it finds evidence of a violation. But that has created a resources problem in the office, said assistant attorney general Lisa Mendoza, who said she tries to respond to the complaints forwarded to her while also handling unrelated prosecutions.
“It maybe doesn’t get as much immediate focus as it should,” Mendoza said of government transparency law.
In some instances, local prosecutors might be reluctant to investigate open government complaints against the same county commissioners who control their budgets, Anstaett said.
Three-fourths of the open government complaints in Kansas come from private citizens who are less likely than news organizations to pursue litigation, he said.
“If you don’t have any financial wherewithal, basically when they say ’No,’ you go home,” Anstaett said. “Even if you might deserve to get that record.”
Schmidt’s office said it expects the new unit to cost about $160,000 per year.
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Information from: The Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal, https://www.cjonline.com
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