By rejecting Councilman David Tackett’s resolution to make it easier for citizens hear the proceedings in County Council via the web (live or archived video), you put yourselves on the record as firmly opposed to the cause of Open Government.
Given the times we live in, restricting the availability of your proceedings demonstrates an incredible arrogance on your part. The Council has vital business on its agenda — new taxes, reducing county government as well as planning for another fiscal year where revenues are unlikely to support the County Government. Instead of welcoming the citizens who can participate in this government via their computers, you’ve decided that participating in government is a privilege that is earned by making the trip to Council Chambers. Even this resolution provides its own example — how is it that citizens didn’t get some notice that issues of Open Government were going to be discussed?
Open Government is the right of every citizen paying taxes. You need more County Citizens to be informed, and you need to realize that you were not voted into office to conduct your business behind closed doors. More importantly, it is not your job to monitor who it is that is accessing County meeting information or how that information gets used.
If you have concerns about people hacking into the County website, you have bigger problems than whether County Meetings are recorded. If you are worried about people doctoring your words, then just go to TV — that is much harder to alter. If you have concerns about people using that information to criticize your work, then you need to resign. Not one of us has a job where we are not subject to criticism, fair or not. And criticism of the Council is legitimate input to the process — if that criticism is wrong or vindictive, then you get to respond to that. It is not legitimate to close off your records and only release them to people who appear to get themselves on a list you can monitor.
Councilman Hollins notes that “There are members of the public that will go out of their way to abuse us, to embarrass us.” From where I sit, County Council is perfectly capable of embarrassing itself already, and certainly has with this decision. But you are a public body, serving the public and being vulnerable to some of the more vindictive or insecure of the public is part of the deal. What is for certain is that no one sent you to Council to excel at CYA.
Pass Councilman David Tackett’s resolution and get your meetings up on the web TODAY.
EDIT: WDEL reports (with audio!) here.