(Uniontown) Herald-Standard, April 12

DeWeese praised for change of heart

It's a welcome breakthrough that state Rep. H. William "Bill" DeWeese has agreed to co-sponsor sweeping open records reform legislation put forth by neighboring state Rep. Timothy S. Mahoney. It's an even more encouraging sign that DeWeese punctuated his stand by appearing on Herald-Standard TV, alongside Mahoney, to publicly state his commitment and answer questions about his metamorphosis on the issue.

"I have enough God-given common sense to know that if I don't lead reform, that reform will go on without me," said DeWeese, who's spent three decades in Harrisburg, much of it as a power-brokering insider.

DeWeese knows that voter rebellion last year claimed his close friend and House Democratic ally, former state Rep. Mike Veon, as well as the top two Senate Republicans, Sens. Bob Jubelirer and David Brightbill. The Waynesburg Democrat also knows that he barely survived his toughest re-election battle ever, against a relative unknown in Republican Greg Hopkins.

DeWeese obviously understands that unless he and the House Democrats he leads, who control the chamber by a scant 102-101 margin, get with the reform program, both are in jeopardy of losing their positions in next year's elections. In his own words, using the biblical analogy of the conversion of St. Paul, DeWeese has been "knocked off the donkey" on the road to Damascus and has "seen the light."

We sincerely hope that's the case, and that DeWeese will use his powerful position as majority leader to advance the Mahoney legislation, which would bring long-overdue and desperately needed reforms to an open records law that dates back to 1958. The reforms Mahoney is proposing would not only make for a more open and accountable state legislature, but would make it easier for citizens to get information on other layers of government as well.

By Mahoney's estimation, 90 percent of the problems recently being revealed by a probing media, such as spending excesses at the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency and the Legislature's own doling out of heretofore secret staff pay raises, wouldn't have happened had his bill already been in effect. That's because it would have been easier for you and for us to find out how government is using your tax money. In that regard, the Mahoney bill is a self-correcting prophecy.

DeWeese has said, for the record and on tape, that he is foursquare behind the reform effort, which also includes many changes in how the state House conducts business. Quoting the French poet Victor Hugo, DeWeese says, "Nothing is so powerful as an idea whose time has come."

We commend DeWeese for taking this stand. But we want him -- and you -- to know what we'll be watching and assessing how these reforms shake down. We'll dole out our praise and our criticism based on a high standard.

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