Take Action to Save the Open Public Records Act

The Problem

Plans to gut the Open Public Records Act during a lame duck session are moving forward. If passed, this would render OPRA meaningless and citizens of NJ would be in the dark on what their government bodies are doing.

Here are the bills:

https://www.njlm.org/Blog.aspx?IID=232#item

https://www.njlm.org/Blog.aspx?IID=231#item

https://www.njlm.org/Blog.aspx?IID=230#item

Here is an article John recently wrote that provides insight into how this bill would harm NJ Residents.

What You Can Do

Please consider emailing Sen. Scutari on the proposed OPRA reforms currently being considered. His email is [email protected]

Here is an example of what can be written:

Dear Senator Scutari,

Please encourage your fellow legislators to put a hold on OPRA reform during this lame-duck session.

My main concerns with this legislation are:

(1) Moving OPRA cases away from Superior Court to the GRC.  The GRC is already backlogged, and the amount allocated in the proposed legislation would not even address the current issues, much less the burden imposed on it by this proposed legislation. Also, the GRC consists of political appointments which represent a significant potential for conflict of interest and political interference.

(2) The removal of fee-shifting would give yet another advantage to government entities that have budgets for legal expenses and remove key protection for working-class and middle-class families who confront improper refusals or redactions and cannot afford legal counsel.  Even with the current protections in place, municipalities and school boards use the courts to delay having to provide information even in instances where they know they will lose.

(3) “Repeat Requestors” adds an unreasonable burden in cases where municipalities and school boards continuously engage in harmful behaviors requiring close monitoring by the public.

These are just a few of the issues connected to the proposed legislation.The current law has led to a significant increase in transparency and has empowered many working class and middle class families to correct wrongs in their communities.

Please put a hold on this legislation so that you can get more feedback from citizens and organizations like the ACLU and League of Women Voters to improve it.

Sincerely,