Before getting started on this, I want to acknowledge our Mayor, every single member of our Town Council, and the four BOE Members who publicly conveyed their opposition to NJ legislation that seeks to destroy the Open Public Records Act, which would be catastrophic for NJ residents. With one day left, I hope Ms. Bradford, Ms. Stanley, and Ms. Penna do the same.
How many NJ residents were aware of this legislation that removes several essential rights they now have to information and has been responsible for exposing corruption and bad government throughout NJ? How many NJ residents knew that the protections they had against government bureaucracies with highly paid attorneys would disappear with a flip of the switch and that, with that flip, they could be sued simply for asking for government records?
I will tell you who did know: the League of Municipalities, who apparently influenced this legislation. “The League” is an association representing municipal governments throughout NJ with a current mayor at the helm.
Another organization that supported this assault on transparency was the NJ School Board Association. I know far more about them. In the years I have observed their guidance to our Board of Education, they have advocated for work to be done in committees.
OPMA laws in NJ are feeble, and Boards that operate by committees (most do) can hide their decisions from the public until the 11th hour.
They are also famous for “this is a meeting of the Board” as an argument as to why elected representatives should not interact with the people they represent during public meetings.
While families across NJ demand more transparency from their schools, this association, funded with taxpayer dollars through membership and training fees school districts pay them, advocated that NJ turn back the clock to the dark ages a few short days ago by supporting Sarlo’s bill.
When looking at the whole picture, they appear to believe that School Boards are somehow exempt from our expectations of a government body. Their feedback is often couched in the term “best practice” with little to no empirical evidence to support their positions.
Both organizations are essentially lobbying groups for government representatives – removing any accountability representatives have for speaking directly to issues, which would allow their constituents to know where they stand – by having a mouthpiece say, “We support this.” It divorces any accountability elected officials have for their positions by enabling them to hide behind groups people don’t know and have no influence over.
This practice also allows School Boards and Municipal Governments to use the circular argument that “well, the NJ School Board Association supports this” to give credibility to their positions.
So, I would love for the New Jersey School Board Association and League of Municipalities to tell us who, in their membership, supports this awful bill.
Can they provide us with a list of names?
These organizations can stop telling us they represent school boards and municipalities – school boards and municipalities represent us and can speak for themselves. Clearly, they are not representing Berkeley Heights on this issue. Our municipal government opposes this legislation, and half of our BOE has spoken publicly against it.
Elected representatives – stop being cowards. We did not elect the NJ School Board Association or the League of Municipalities to represent our interests. We elected you. YOU can go to Trenton or write legislators and publicly take a stand on this issue instead of hiding behind de-facto lobbying groups – it’s your job.
There is nothing wrong with associations and leagues when they serve the purpose of information sharing – but they are not a replacement for elected representatives.
NJ Residents, contact your Mayors, Town Council Members, and School Boards and ask them directly where they stand on this issue. Berkeley Heights knows where [most of] its local representatives stand – your town should also.
More importantly, contact your State Representatives and let them know how you feel about this awful piece of legislation.
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