New Jersey senate considers bill that would make it more difficult for journalists to request government info
One lawyer told a local news site that the bill 'bring us darkness' and 'not sunshine' into the public discourse
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A New Jersey State senator is supporting a bill that would weaken the state's Open Public Records Act (OPRA), which allows citizens and journalists access to government communications and information.
The bill, sponsored by State Sen. Paul Sarlo, would "make it difficult for requestors who are denied records to find lawyers to represent them to fight records denials from agencies that don’t follow the law and wrongfully deny access to public records," make exempt "all email logs and call logs" and in general would make it far more difficult for journalists and members of the public to see the communications of government officials," per the The Jersey Vindicator.
"It’s shocking that the Legislature has opted to kick off Sunshine Week by putting forth yet another disastrous bill to gut OPRA," Lawyer C.J. Griffin told the news site. "There is nothing pro-transparency in this bill — every provision that is added or amended significantly undermines the public’s right to information and makes it much harder, if not impossible, for reporters to do their jobs. This bill brings us darkness, not sunshine."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A New Jersey State senator is supporting a bill that would weaken the state's Open Public Records Act (OPRA), which allows citizens access to public information. (Getty Images)
The bill "mandates the use of an OPRA request form, adding one more hurdle to obtaining records," the outlet revealed. "Currently, citizens can email requests without using an official form."
The legislation also allots for a "Police Record Access Improvement Task Force" constituted of 12 members with the purpose of "investigat[ing] the existing statutes governing public access to police records and develop recommendations for necessary changes to the law," per the text of the bill.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The ACLU of New Jersey has criticized the bill, writing that the state "deserves better."
"Despite our input & concerns, NJ lawmakers have introduced a bill attacking the Open Public Records Act," the ACLU of New Jersey wrote in a post Saturday. "New Jersey deserves better."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Any good faith attempt at reform would have involved all stakeholders. So far, none of the stakeholders that I have contacted this evening were aware of the new legislation," New Jersey Foundation for Open Government president Walter Luers said. "While we, again, would welcome the opportunity to engage in good-faith discussions on meaningful reform, this is not how the Senate should go about it."
Luers told The Jersey Vindicator that a key part of the bill that allows a government agency to close off access to records when it "has reason to believe that disclosure of such personal information may result in harassment, unwanted solicitation, identity theft, or opportunities for other criminal acts" would be ripe for abuse.
The bill would also "expand OPRA’s privacy provision to require records custodians to protect from public access ‘information that might reasonably lead to disclosure of a person’s personal information,’" per The Jersey Vindicator.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The bill would also "expand OPRA’s privacy provision to require records custodians to protect from public access ‘information that might reasonably lead to disclosure of a person’s personal information,’" per The Jersey Vindicator. (Getty Images)
'"Might' is an awfully thin reed on which to perch a brand new exception to access," Luers said to the outlet.
The New Jersey Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee is slated to review the bill on Monday morning.
Sarlo's office did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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