Montana county stays transparent, but not without a fight

Citizens in Montana have had a hard time getting public information, but at least the courts are on their side.

A Billings Gazette reporter had requested in January to see a complaint that had been filed against a county elected official. The complaint prompted the Yellowstone County Commission to hire an independent investigator at taxpayer expense. The reporter’s request was for a copy of the complaint and investigation report, which didn’t identify the complaining party or other private citizens.

District Judge Susan Watters reaffirmed legal precedent by ordering Yellowstone County to produce the requested public documents, saying:

“It is the county’s responsibility to go through the documents and determine what can be released. I believe the county failed to complete their duty that was required of them when the request was made to release the documents.”

Billings Gazette was justifiably annoyed by the whole situation, with an editorial writer stating:

The law doesn’t say that citizens have to wait to see public documents until a court reviews them or wait till a government attorney reviews them. It doesn’t say that citizens have to file written requests or forms. The law says that public officials who have custody of the document are to make it available to the public.

The Gazette notes that the denial could not have been due to privacy concerns, since the newspaper asked for copies of documents that had been redacted to remove the complaining party’s identification. The conclusion, then, is that the government just wanted to withold information because it could.

It is absolutely too much hassle to have to sue the county for information it should be disclosing on its own. The implications are great: a reporter, working for a newspaper, has the resources and the motivation to pursue information until he or she gets it. But sunshine laws exist for regular citizens, too, not just full-time sleuths. In this case, openness won, but it’s just a reminder that the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.