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This “owner’s manual” tells you how Louisiana government works. It provides tools you can use to ensure that the work is being done right and that government is responsive, efficient, and effective. It is your right to enjoy the freedom that democratic government provides. But it is also your responsibility to keep this complex machinery […]
The voting procedure used to select legislative auditor candidates runs counter to the Open Meetings Law. On two separate occasions in the past week, the search committee used secret ballots. The law states that “Each public body shall be prohibited from utilizing any manner of proxy voting procedure, secret balloting, or any other means to circumvent […]
Louisiana’s sunshine laws aim to ensure government transparency and access to public information. Rapidly changing technology both expands citizen access to public records and meetings and creates new challenges. Government efficiency has grown with the ease of collecting and monitoring electronic information, but so has the potential for privacy invasion and public record destruction.
Since the publication of PAR’s report, complex new issues have emerged as a result of evolving forms of communication and a new emphasis on security. Several bills proposed during the 2001 legislative session attempted to address technology-related issues.
This card explains your rights and responsibilities under Louisiana’s 2002 open meetings and public records laws. The Louisiana Constitution states that “No person shall be denied the right to observe the deliberations of public bodies and examine public documents, except in cases established by law.”
This study was not designed to be an exhaustive analysis of all the issues involved in public contacting for legal services. Rather it was intended to provide factual information which would enable us to identify areas of concern and provide a basis for additional inquiry.
Observers of the 2001 regular legislative session witnessed a barrage of proposals chipping away at laws protecting open government. Bills fired from all directions challenged public records and open meetings laws on diverse issues such as access to the names of people arrested, government e-mail, and legislative committee video conferencing.