Home 
Opinion Editorials Keep public budget notices accessible
Keep public budget notices accessible
|
Another effort is under way in the Oregon Legislature to chip away at
existing laws that require public entities to publish legal notices
where the public can actually access them — in newspapers. HB 2828
would allow municipalities to publish budget summaries on websites. The proposal is exactly the kind of slippery slope we were referring to a few weeks ago when we wrote about another bill, HB 2393. That bill would allow county sheriffs to post sales or auctions of property on a website rather than in a newspaper of general circulation where the transaction is occurring. HB 2828 takes the matter a step further by actually removing local jurisdictions’ budget summaries from print. Such a move would not be in the best interest of the public. It would not lead to better and more open government. Under HB 2828, citizens — except for the 25 percent in Oregon who do not have Internet access — would have to search out budget summaries rather than simply come across them while reading their local paper. How many people will actually do so? Local government entities are required by law to place paid legal notices in newspapers so that constituents have the opportunity to see what is pending. Local government budget summaries, certain hearings and land use actions are among the items that governments must advertise through verifiable legal notices that require affidavits of publication. The web can’t provide that, nor can municipalities guarantee that servers won’t go down, that sites won’t be hacked and that numbers won’t be toyed with. Paid legal notices in newspapers (most of which also post the notices online) provide accessibility and accountability. Moving away from that would be a disservice to the public. The Legislature has more important matters to tend to. It should dispense with consideration of bills that make access and transparency more difficult. |
