Letter to the Editor: Sunshine Ordinance Would Mean Open Government for Hercules

California’s two main sunshine laws — the Brown Act and the Public Records Act — state that they are minimum standards for transparency. Both laws invite cities and other public agencies to fill in their blanks, close up their loopholes, and set requirements for public access to meet local preferences.  Many cities already have enacted Sunshine Ordinances that go well beyond the Brown Act, one such ordinance is the city of Dixon. I personally think it would be a good guide for the city to use as a template for the City of Hercules Sunshine Ordinance.

Democracy in our representative form of government requires thoughtful and meaningful public participation.  To fulfill this requirement, the people must have timely access to the same information on issues as is available to our elected officials and city staff, the opportunity to comment in open meetings on these issues before decisions are made, and prompt access to all public records.

I think most of us thought if we could win the recall and place candidates in office that supported the recall ideals we would finally have an open, transparent and accessible city hall but that reality has not completely materialized. I truly believe it is time for Hercules to enact a strong Sunshine Ordinance. What that would do is mandate that the information that the city officials have will be accessible to citizens too. It would give citizens an opportunity to make informed comments at council meetings and voice concern before decisions are made.

A Sunshine Ordinance would mandate that the closed sessions of council be recorded and keep by the City Attorney until such time as there is resolution of the closed session items. Those sessions can then be released to the public so we can understand how decisions were made and why. These recordings and any other records of the Closed Session shall be made available whenever all rationales for keeping the records confidential are no longer applicable.

It would require open session discussions only concerning the City Manager’s performance goals and objectives or proposed compensation, and release of any related records.

It would allow citizens to place items on council agenda for discussion. With twenty signatures of registered voters an item could be placed on the agenda and could not be placed on the consent calendar.

It would mandate a Sunshine commission of citizens be formed to be an ombudsmen group to insure that the Sunshine Ordinance was being fulfilled.

It would require that a calendar be maintained by all elected officials, the City Manager, the City Attorney,  and all department heads, listing by date, place, and time, all City-related meetings, appointments they make and meetings and conferences that they attend in person or by technological means.  Such calendars would be Public Records subject to disclosure, except for those parts, if any, specifically exempted by State and Federal law and shall be posted to the City’s website prior to the close of business each week.

It would simplify the process of obtaining city documents and severally limit documents that remain confidential. It literally lets the sun shine on city hall and makes it hard for anyone to do business without the public’s knowledge.

If you support open government where everyone is treated fairly and you have the same information as your elected officials and city staff, then you would be in support of a sunshine ordinance for the City of Hercules

Please join me in urging the city council to enact, as soon as possible, a Sunshine Ordinance that truly lets the citizens know what is going on at city hall.

Abraham Lincoln said: “Let the people know the facts, and the country will be safe.”

http://www.ci.dixon.ca.us/DocumentView.aspx?DID=589