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Source: https://apnews.com/article/business...andemic-laws-9afc47c83c7678cc3dffcebde84fc94a
Governments delay access to public records during pandemic
By DAVID A. LIEBtoday
As states prepared to reopen their economies following coronavirus shutdowns last spring, The Associated Press asked governors across the U.S. for records that could shed light on how businesses and health officials influenced their decisions.
Nine months later, after several more COVID-19 surges and shutdowns, the AP still has not received records from about 20 states. Some outright denied the requests or sought payments the AP declined to make. Others have not responded, or said they still need more time.
Public records have become harder to get since the world was upended by the pandemic a year ago. Governors, legislatures and local officials have suspended or ignored laws setting deadlines to respond to records requests. They cited obstacles for staffers who are working at home or are overwhelmed with crisis management.
The result is that information that once took a few days or weeks to obtain now often takes months ? depriving the public of timely facts about decisions their leaders are making.
?The pandemic rages on, but investigative journalism doesn?t halt. The public?s right to know doesn?t cease to exist,? said Gunita Singh, a legal fellow at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, which has tracked nationwide delays in responding to public records requests.
?Having these unnecessary measures in place that hinder open government sets a terrible precedent,? Singh said...
Governments delay access to public records during pandemic
By DAVID A. LIEBtoday
As states prepared to reopen their economies following coronavirus shutdowns last spring, The Associated Press asked governors across the U.S. for records that could shed light on how businesses and health officials influenced their decisions.
Nine months later, after several more COVID-19 surges and shutdowns, the AP still has not received records from about 20 states. Some outright denied the requests or sought payments the AP declined to make. Others have not responded, or said they still need more time.
Public records have become harder to get since the world was upended by the pandemic a year ago. Governors, legislatures and local officials have suspended or ignored laws setting deadlines to respond to records requests. They cited obstacles for staffers who are working at home or are overwhelmed with crisis management.
The result is that information that once took a few days or weeks to obtain now often takes months ? depriving the public of timely facts about decisions their leaders are making.
?The pandemic rages on, but investigative journalism doesn?t halt. The public?s right to know doesn?t cease to exist,? said Gunita Singh, a legal fellow at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, which has tracked nationwide delays in responding to public records requests.
?Having these unnecessary measures in place that hinder open government sets a terrible precedent,? Singh said...