A quote pulled from national news has great application for Christiansburg:
"Every public official has a responsibility to earn the public's trust by avoiding even the appearance of impropriety as matters of public concern are deliberated and decided."
Absolutely right.
"All possible business, personal and political connections should face the bright, constant light of public scrutiny."
Absolutely right.
Now that Town Council has had a refresher course on FOIA laws, there should be no question about its responsibility to citizens. As pointed out by the Mayor at the beginning of this "training," all town administrators and council members had the opportunity to read FOIA information when they assumed their public responsibilities as well as receiving annual updates and attending various orientation sessions.
It's too bad you can't visit www.christiansburg.org and determine how long each member of council has served, and therefore see how many opportunities for receiving FOIA information were presented in the past. Certainly none have served as long as these laws have been in place (1966).
The questions or council's own confusion seemed to stem from how many members called together constituted a public meeting. Or the intent of "public notification" and the number of days this requires. Or materials that should be made available to the public at the same time council receives it. Or what can and cannot be discussed in closed session (which is optional, rather than required). Or whether actions can be taken on these discussions while in closed session. Or whether email and telephone conversations on the same topic circumvent the public's right to know. Or when something is sent to a committee (think noise, public nuisance or safety concerns, tourism or economic development) and buried. Or whether requests for public records can be charged exorbitant fees or simply denied.
All this has been clarified.
What voters need to focus on now is accountability. Let's all see how the "letter and intent" of this law is fulfilled by our leaders going forward.
If they do not meet this obligation, in your opinion, you have the opportunity for letting them know -- via email, telephone calls, attending public meetings, letters to the editor, as measured by information provided in the new web site under development, or at the polls in May, 2010.
This is -- absolutely -- our right, as citizens.