Altoona Mirror , April 11

Strengthening Sunshine Law draws support

By Jessica VanderKolk, Dawn Keller and Phil Ray,
Staff Writers

Pennsylvanians could see changes in the state’s open meetings law after two grand juries recently called for harsher penalties and stronger enforcement.

State Attorney General Tom Corbett supports the recommendations, and his office is offering help drafting legislation to make the changes.

The most recent recommendation to strengthen the Sunshine Law came (April 5) when a statewide grand jury recommended the indictment of a township supervisor charged with manipulating the sale of former state land for his benefit and the benefit of friends.

The grand jury said the testimony in the case about secret deals and meetings focused on the shortcomings of the Sunshine Law and decided to recommend changes, Corbett’s spokesman Nils Fredericksen said.

“The Sunshine Act has no teeth,” he said.

Those who violate the law face only a small fine and no criminal penalty, even if the violation is intentional.

“The Sunshine Law needs serious strengthening if it is to do what it is supposed to do. Now you can violate it and turn your back on it,” Fredericksen said. “We feel the grand jury represents a very clear call to action.”

The grand jury report, which was released (April 5), recommends state lawmakers clarify and strengthen the Sunshine Act by adding enforcement provisions and penalties.

It recommends the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission provide administrative enforcement.

The recommendations came after the grand jury found that Haverford Township officials conducted business related to a state hospital property sale in secret and intentionally lied or did not reveal details of the sale to the public.

The Sunshine Act allows the public to witness agency discussion and decisions, with some exceptions. The current penalty for violations is a $100 fine.

One bill waiting for approval in the state Senate State Government Committee would increase the fine.

Sen. Gibson Armstrong of York and Lancaster counties introduced the bill last month based on a grand jury recommendation in a similar Lancaster County case.

Three county commissioners pleaded guilty in December to Sunshine Act violations after they met privately to discuss a nursing home sale.

Armstrong’s bill increases to $1,000 the first-offense fine for Sunshine Act violations, based on a grand jury recommendation. It calls for a $2,000 fine for subsequent offenses.

Aide David Atkinson said Armstrong hopes to move the bill by the end of the month and make other changes.

“We’re looking at some provisions in other states,” Atkinson said. “This is the beginning of things. This isn’t the end of it.”

Atkinson called the open meetings law a fundamental piece of good government legislation, along with the state’s open records law, which has lawmakers and Gov. Ed Rendell calling for reform.

“Open meetings and open records are two of the fundamental good government pieces and we need to modernize them both,” he said.

The Sunshine Act also must include realistic provisions relating to local government, said Sen. John H. Eichelberger Jr., R-Blair. As a former Blair County commissioner, Eichelberger said many in Harrisburg don’t understand the way local government operates and set unrealistic expectations.

He said at a forum he attended a Pennsylvania Newspaper Association attorney criticized the idea of one commissioner attending a meeting and reporting back to the others if that information could lead to a decision.

“I know as a county commissioner, even with weekly meetings there are many things that happen every day,” he said. “It would force boards to all attend everything, which is a waste of resources. There needs to be a more balanced approach to how local government can conduct business.”

As vice chairman of the Local Government Committee, Eichelberger said he introduced the issue himself.

“Maybe we can try to work together to come up with a better approach to redefine the law,” he said.

The grand jury also found the solicitor failed to disclose Sunshine Law provisions relevant to commissioner conduct.

David Andrews, solicitor for several area school districts, said every solicitor has an obligation to make sure their municipal body is following the Sunshine Act.

It’s natural that people will go astray in executive sessions.

“It’s the duty of the solicitor to enforce the law,” he said. “I think there should be enforcements that apply to solicitors because it’s our duty.”

Andrews said over the years, he has told elected bodies they can’t continue conversation about particular issues in executive session.

He said the great majority of public bodies have no intention of breaking the law.

Andrews said the biggest problem usually stems from budgetary discussions. A board may be discussing layoffs and then start discussing the budget in executive session. Discussing who the board plans to lay off in executive session is permitted. Discussing the budget is not.

The law has limited reasons for executive sessions — litigation, personnel and sale of real estate, he said.

Andrews said correcting the governing body can be difficult because it is your client. But, he tells new attorneys in his office they must do it.

“You have to speak up,” he said.

Andrews said he thinks the laws are fine -- they just need to be enforced across the board.

“If the laws are enforced as they are now, there’s adequate protection for the public,” he said.

He said fines for those elected officials who intentionally break the law could be increased. School district insurance companies wouldn’t pay those fines. The money would come out of elected officials’ pockets, he said.

In a March 15 PNA editorial, General Counsel Teri Henning said the main problem with the law is public officials ignore it, conducting business in private and claiming they can do so if they don’t make decisions.

“It has become obvious that the only hope for stopping these practices is to amend the act to specifically prohibit them and to strengthen the penalty provisions to create a real disincentive to violating the act,” she stated.

Henning added the PNA this year will collect examples of law violations, organize the stories by region, share them with lawmakers and use them to work for changes.

“Too often, the public is cut out of vital discussions and decisions,” she stated. “It’s time to change that.”

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