Defending the right to access to information

From The Arvada Press:

Guest Column

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Jeffrey A. Roberts
Freedom of Information Coalition Executive Director

Jeffrey A. Roberts

“Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectant.”

Louis Brandeis wrote these words a century ago, before his appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court, to note the power of publicity as a cure for “social and industrial diseases” like the inequities fostered by the corporate monopolies of his time.

Today all states have “sunshine laws,” a catchall term for statutes requiring openness in government — rules meant to guarantee access to public records and proceedings. Justice Brandeis would probably approve: Shed light on the workings of government and society is better off.

Read the full column in The Arvada Press.

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