A bill from Republican lawmakers that could lead to restrictions on how the state’s public access counselor does their job is on its way to the governor’s desk.
Sen. Aaron Freeman (R-Indianapolis) told lawmakers last week that he believes the position and recent interpretations of the laws have veered too liberal, which should change.
“We should be interpreting things according to what is written,” he said.
Freeman filed an amendment to House Bill 1338 last week that takes a strict approach to the public access counselor’s role by requiring that they interpret the plain text of the laws.
The bill has ties to contentious suburban politics in a Hamilton County library system. Freeman told WFYI he did not agree with some of the counselor’s recent opinions — one of those opinions is tethered to controversies at the library.
Luke Britt, the state’s longest-serving public access counselor, issued advisory opinions involving the Hamilton East Public Library system last year, including a meeting where two board members met their attorneys at a Fishers coffee shop.
Britt declined to comment on the legislation, but said Freeman did not meet with him or discuss his proposed changes to the office.
“All we’re trying to do here is provide some direction, so that he has the ability to do his job without having to take major leaps and bounds on interpreting gaps in code.” Sen. Scott Baldwin (R-Noblesville), the bill’s sponsor in the Senate, said.
The House voted 58-36 Wednesday in favor of changes to House Bill 1338, which addresses disruptions of public meetings in addition to the public access counselor’s office.
The bill now goes to Gov. Eric Holcomb. If signed, some public access advocates fear it could lead to confusion and have a chilling effect on what the office does.
What does the public access counselor do?
The state’s public access counselor provides advice and assistance on public records laws. The counselor also writes advisory opinions that interpret these laws after members of the public or agencies file a complaint related to public records laws.
The Indiana General Assembly created the office in 1999.
Freeman said a “plain” interpretation of the law should not limit how Britt and future counselors issue advisory opinions. Baldwin agreed that it does not prevent the counselor from seeking mainstream resources to interpret words or their meanings.
“I’m sure he’ll find plenty to do,” Freeman said. “He’s a member of government and we all have plenty to do.”
But Britt’s role currently relies on the liberal interpretation of the law as it’s written in state laws.
“When confronted with a question of interpretation, the law should be liberally construed in favor of openness,” according to Indiana’s handbook of public access laws.
Gerry Lanosga, an associate professor of journalism at Indiana University, said the bill is asking the public access counselor not to do something that those laws explicitly tell him to do, which is that they be read liberally.
“We’re all supposed to read those laws and interpret them broadly to implement the public policy of having the greatest amount of public access and information to the affairs of government,” Langosa said.
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