Inslee set to decide — veto Legislature’s public records bill, or let it stand?

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has a midnight Thursday deadline to decide whether he will veto a controversial bill exempting the Legislature from the voter-approved Public Records Act or allow the measure to become law.

State lawmakers rushed Senate Bill 6617 at extraordinary speed through the legislative process last week in response to a Jan. 19 ruling from Thurston County Superior Court Judge Chris Lanese saying that individual legislators have always been subject to the Public Records Act.

Lawmakers had previously been denying records requests based on their interpretation of state law.

Senate Bill 6617 would require legislators to release some records — such as work calendars and emails between them and registered lobbyists — but would shield many others.

It would also retroactively block older legislative records such as the ones being sought by a coalition of news organizations who sued the Legislature last year, arguing the information should be subject to disclosure under current law.

The Legislature has appealed the ruling in the lawsuit, led by the Associated Press and including The News Tribune, to the state Supreme Court.

Lawmakers say the bill takes a step forward on public disclosure, offering records they long believed to be shielded from the public.

Open government advocates have pointed to the Thurston County court ruling to say the Legislature has been violating state law for years and is now attempting a widespread shuttering of the public’s information.

Inslee’s office has been quiet on what he will decide.

In a recent MSNBC appearance, he called the bill “a bad idea” that he doesn’t believe is necessary. Inslee has long chosen not to invoke a privilege to shield many of his own documents and emails.

“You can be a good representative and still be transparent about your communications,” Inslee, who is a Democrat, told television host Chris Hayes.

But he also noted the measure has a “veto-proof majority” since it passed with wide margins in the House and Senate. Still, there is no guarantee lawmakers will override Inslee’s veto if he chooses to block the SB 6617.

Some lawmakers have told constituents they believe Inslee will allow the bill to become law without signing it.

The governor has faced a massive public lobbying effort for him to veto the bill.

More than a dozen newspapers around the state ran front-page editorials recently calling on Inslee to veto SB 6617, part of a strong outcry from news organizations.

The state’s Sunshine Committee, which reviews exemptions to the Public Disclosure Act, said Inslee should veto the bill because of a “lack of public hearing and input” and other concerns.

Inslee’s office has also received more than 11,500 emails and 5,500 phone calls in the last week about SB 6617, according to Inslee spokeswoman Tara Lee. Nearly all of those contacting the office have urged Inslee to veto it.

This story was originally published March 1, 2018 at 1:33 PM with the headline "Inslee set to decide — veto Legislature’s public records bill, or let it stand?."