FOIA advocates get big victory on open meetings law during busy National Sunshine Week at State Capitol

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“I have worked in three states, Louisiana, Tennessee and Arkansas, and worked under three different FOI laws. Arkansas (FOIA), despite some exemptions that have been added since the years I’ve lived here, is still one of the strongest in the country,” said Alvarado. “This bill makes it stronger.”

Lanny Richmond, legal counsel for the Arkansas Municipal League, was the lone person to speak against SB 380, saying a new law would “create ambiguity” in the length of time a custodian must respond to a FOIA request. Following the debate, Sen. Bryan King, R-Green Forest, offered a “do pass” recommendation but SB 380 failed to move out of committee due to the lack of a second.

Next on the agenda, Senate Bill 381 also saw nearly the same lineup speaking in support of legislation mandating annual FOIA training for the local governing bodies, including city councils, quorum courts and school boards.

Clark’s original bill filed on March 7 would have required at least two hours of “in-person or live training by video conference provided by a person knowledgeable about” the FOIA. The training would also be open to the public. However, Clark amended the bill to require only one hour of training, which assuaged some opposition from the committee.

The strongest defense of HB 381 came from Robert Steinbuch, a law professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Bowen School of Law. Steinbuch, who serves on the Arkansas FOIA Coalition and the legislature-backed state FOIA Task Force, told the committee that the one-hour training requirement was not burdensome. He also lambasted the Municipal League for repeated attacks on the state FOIA law.

“The bottom line is that one hour is not that much to require of our elected officials,” he said.

In closing for his bill, Clark said annual training was necessary to halt repeated violations of FOIA by local elected officials, including those who say they don’t know or understand the law. “We are attempting to fix that. The whole point here is that we need training,” he said.

Following a motion by King to approve SB 381 and a second by Payton, the measure received a “do pass” recommendation in a voice vote and moved to the Senate floor on Thursday where it failed to get the required support. The final tally was 15 yeas, 10 nays and 10 present or not voting.

Freedom of Information Day is observed every year on March 16, the birthday of President James Madison, a fierce advocate for the freedom of data and individual rights to obtain the correct government information.

Freedom of Information Day celebrates the idea of free information, giving more power and transparency to people and making democracies stronger. Every person has an equal role in the nation’s governance, which means that everyone’s vote is important. The same fact applies to freedom of information.

Every citizen deserves to know the facts related to the government. This helps people make important decisions and ensure that their government and elected representatives serve them well.