Lawmakers should seize the opportunity to protect Michigan schoolchildren from countless amounts of unwanted solicitation by protecting public school’s student directories from Freedom of Information Act requests.
And while they’re at it, the Legislature should look to update Michigan’s “sunshine laws,” which protect citizens’ right to access information and take part in their government.
The state Freedom of Information and Open Meetings acts are out-of-date and in need of an overhaul.
A measure sponsored by Rep. Tony Stamas, R-Midland, would protect public school student’s personal information, reducing unwanted solicitation.
The bill already has passed both chambers and will return to the House for approval of Senate changes, and could reach the governor’s desk before the Legislature departs for recess.
The bill received unanimous support, passing with a 102-0 vote in the House and 37-0 in the Senate.
If only there were the same amount of interest from Stamas and other legislators to protect Michigan citizens’ right to access their government. The sunshine laws, so named because they allow the “sun to shine in” on government actions, were written in 1976 in the wake of Watergate. A lot has changed since them.
For instance, thanks to a Michigan Supreme Court ruling in 1999, the state’s three constitutionally chartered universities - University of Michigan, Wayne State University and MSU - don’t have to abide by the open meetings law. Instead, their governing boards only have to hold their “formal meetings” in public - whatever that means.
Apparently, there’s a fourth branch of government in Michigan that no one can touch - the universities.
Despite efforts of individuals and media outlets, even getting routine documents through state and local governments has become more difficult than it once was.
And, as The State News has found this semester, even some student governments are losing respect of the importance of operating an open government.
It’s time the state Legislature, while it’s working to protect the privacy of individuals, takes on this issue to protect our rights as citizens.
