GOVERNMENT IN SECRET

Whenever government tries to conduct its business behind closed doors, everybody loses. Taxpayers are kept in the dark about how their money is being spent and about how their elected officials are performing. Elected officials are cut off from good lines of communication about the problems they are handling and the decisions they are making. Businesses and individuals who do business with government are preventing from knowing what their competition is doing to get tax dollars.

For these and many other reasons, there has long been an effort to keep public meetings open to the public. In Missouri, that effort is embodied in a set of laws known collectively as the Sunshine Law. Its name derives from the intent to let full sunlight shine on the workings of all of government.

When the Scott County Commission met last week to talk to representatives of a Sikeston construction company about a new jail, the commissioners chose to hold the meeting behind closed doors. By way of explanation, the presiding commissioner said the meeting was closed because there might be discussions about real estate. In fact, however, the proposed jail likely would be built on land the county already owns. Moreover, the commission failed to adhere to the Sunshine Law requirement that advance notice must be given of closed meeting, stating the specific reason for shutting out the public. The law is very limited on allowable reasons to close a meeting.

Government officials, in particular, must set the example for citizens who want to abide by the law instead of choosing when it is convenient to do so. The Sunshine Law is there to protect everyone. Every time it is ignored, the best interests of government are thwarted.