New state agency suggested to handle records disputes

A state task force on open records issues has agreed unanimously that the Legislature should create a new Office of Open Records that can sort out public-records disputes.

The idea is to copy what states such as Pennsylvania and Connecticut have done. Both states give citizens a place they can go – outside of court and costly legal actions – when their requests for documents are rejected or ignored by state agencies, cities, counties or other government jurisdictions.

“I think somebody will introduce a bill and make it a reality. I don’t know what the Legislature will do because of the budget woes. But it’s possible this would save money for some entities, because they would have some place to go” to resolve disputes, House Majority Leader Lynn Kessler, D-Hoquiam, said.

Kessler was one of nearly two dozen people serving on the task force created by Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna and Democratic state Auditor Brian Sonntag. It met Monday in Olympia for a second time, adopting its recommendations.

Many obstacles lie in the way of getting an agency approved by lawmakers. The biggest is the unknown cost at a time Gov. Chris Gregoire is expected to seek the elimination of several boards and commissions. Washington also faces a budget shortfall of up to $1.7 billion in January.

Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records began in January with 10 employees and a budget of about $1.2 million – all to handle more than 800 cases filed this year.

“I view this as a long-term goal, keeping in mind our economy is not that great and revenues are declining,” said Tim Ford, the AG’s open-government ombudsman who chaired Monday’s meeting.

One participant, attorney Craig Ritchie, cautioned that cities and counties would not ultimately support having a new agency if it is not set up with incentives that reduce disclosure and legal costs for government agencies.

Ford said he plans to send a final legislative request to task force members for review. Then he’ll look to Kessler and three other legislators on the task force to see if they will jointly sponsor a bill.

Task force members disagreed on a couple of issues.

Ten members favor an agency led by a single director who could hire administrative hearings officers to formally review disputes, and who also could be accountable to an appointive power, like the governor.

But five members favor a commission-style agency like the state Public Disclosure Commission, which has citizen appointees that write rules as well as enforce the law with penalties.

Another disagreement is whether to make appeals to the new open records agency mandatory before a citizen or group can go to the local superior court. By a 13-3 margin, the group favors making it optional, but a majority also wanted financial incentives for staying out of court.