To everything there is a season, but, regardless, there’s always sunshine!

It’s time for a school district in the state to stop playing games with the public.  The district recently decided to purchase land and has accepted an offer.  When a request came in for information on what other tracts of land were considered before the decision was made, the district refused to release that information.  It claims it wants to protect those who offered land to the district because the district may again be purchasing land and it will be considering those same tracts in the future.  Since those “future” negotiations are not completed, it believes it can keep secret the names of other landowners and their offers.

But the law is clear.  The district can close information relating to the “leasing,purchase or sale of real estate by a public governmental body wherepublic knowledge of the transaction might adversely affect the legalconsideration therefor. However, any minutes, vote or public recordapproving a contract relating to the leasing, purchase or sale of realestate by a public governmental body shall be made public uponexecution of the lease, purchase or sale of the real estate….” The contract has been executed.  The list of other offers is just that — a list of offers considered in THIS deal and therefore subject to being disclosed.

Who knows whether those same individuals will continue to offer land for sale to the district?  Who knows what price it might be offered for at another time, or whether it might be sold before then, or whether those individuals will even still own the land at that time?  At this point in time, all of that is mere speculation for the district.  To claim that these are offers that have any effectiveness at this point in time is ludicrous.  The board is merely speculating about the future.  There’s no offer until an offer is solicited, so these folks are not in any negotiations with the district now.

This is not a gray area.  Even if this was a close call, there is case law that makes it clear how this should be handled. A court said a few years ago that in situations where something could be open or closed, the sunshine law makes it clear that the ruling must be for openness.  “It isthe public policy of this state that meetings, records, votes, actions,and deliberations of public governmental bodies be open to the publicunless otherwise provided by law.”

Makes you wonder just what they are hiding, doesn’t it?  Could it be there’s no list to produce?  Surely that’s not the case, or is it?

Only one way to find out.  Release the records.  Quit playing games.