A new bill being introduced this legislative session would give Iowans more access to public records often withheld illegally or improperly, clarify existing Freedom of Information Act laws and make government even more transparent in the way it conducts business.
It is a bill we hope gains strong bipartisan support as Iowans can demand greater accountability from those who shape public policy and spend the tax dollars which residents work hard to earn.

Probably one of the most important parts of this bill is the creation of an Iowa Public Information Board. The board would serve to help people — at no charge — who feel they have been wrongly refused access to public information.

The group would have the power to subpoena records and documents to review them and determine whether FOIA requires they be released or withheld. The group also would have the authority to order government agencies to release records, or punish them with fines if they refuse.

The IPIB is the brainchild of a House-Senate interim committee formed by the General Assembly. Its members would be appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate, making it a part of the executive branch.

Opponents are already starting to speak out against it. One complaint is that the new board would cost a lot to operate and likely would not have the traffic to justify its existence. Just about every small newspaper would disagree. Many small papers have been denied public records but could do nothing about it aside from writing stories and editorials — they don’t have the resources to file a lawsuit. After a while, one is tempted to just stop asking. Its easy, for example, for an employee of a small, public school to consider a teacher’s salary as personal information and forget that salary is paid with taxpayer dollars.

The IPIB could create an online database of precedent-setting decisions and clarifications to streamline FOIA requests. The IPIB’s reputation would build. Many once-denied requests would suddenly be approved at the mention of IPIB.

Another complaint is that some would use the board to conduct fishing expeditions. It’s a worthy consideration for the board once established, but not a reason to deny its creation. Between corrupt public servants and info-zealots, we’ll take the latter. Err on the side of disclosure.

It may be that one day all new government documents go digital and online for full, unfettered access, relegating file cabinets to cold storage. Until then, the IPIB is one of the strongest ideas brought forth for government accountability and we strongly support its passage.