13 April 2005

Governor signs bill promoting open government

As part of her support for Kansans’ right to know, Governor Kathleen Sebelius today signed a bill strengthening the Kansas Open Records Act and Kansas Open Meetings Act. Among other things, it clarifies that public agency employee contracts and agreements are not exempt from open records laws.

“The people of Kansas have a right to know what their government is doing and how their tax dollars are being spent. I want to commend the individuals and organizations who pushed for this legislation. As a strong supporter of open government and sunshine laws, I’m pleased to sign this bill into law,” Governor Sebelius said.

SB 78 stipulates that public agency employment contracts and related agreements are not exempt from the Open Records Act. This codifies the finding of the Douglas County District Court in the case of World Company v. University of Kansas.

The bill also requires that on or before January 15 of each year the county or district attorney of each county report to the Attorney General all complaints received during the preceding fiscal year concerning violations of the Open Records Act and the Open Meetings Act, as well as the disposition of each complaint. The Attorney General will then publish a summary of that information listing the public agencies subject to complaints or investigations.

The State Governmental Ethics Law is also amended to require statements of substantial interest to be filed by faculty members of state universities starting in 2006.

Finally, the bill extends by five years more than 240 exemptions to the Kansas Open Records Act, which were scheduled to expire on July 1, 2005.