Friends, today we widen our field of vision beyond Lakewood. We write today about open government in all of Washington. At the least, I hope this column educates you about work to keep government healthy and open. And perhaps some of you may write to the Attorney General by a deadline of Wednesday. Jan. 8, and join me in endorsing transparency..
The Public Records Act (PRA) requires governments to provide records to citizens so we know what’s going on. Public records laws, along with open meetings laws, are a foundation of a transparent and accountable government. They allow citizens to see how decisions are made and understand government operations.
This is super relevant for those of us who want to keep Lakewood livable. As we study what’s been going on within Lakewood, we see forces from far more than City Hall – we see that actions from the Legislature, lobbyists, advocacy groups, and state and Pierce County agencies, among others, are telling our city what to do. And that’s just me talking about land use. Anyone, including you, might need the Public Records Act to learn more about different subjects important to you and the community.
Yet, in recent years, the effectiveness of Washington’s Public Records Act (PRA) has been undermined by delays and poor staffing. If we want our government at every level to be truly responsive, we need stronger rules to ensure timely access to public information.
Several media organizations have submitted improvements through rewording the Model Rules that governments can use to follow the law. Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson, soon to be governor, is asking for feedback on these proposed changes to the state’s Model Rules for administering the PRA. These proposals, driven by concerns raised by journalists and open-government advocates, largely aim to address a growing crisis: governments delaying how they respond to requests for information.
Real Examples of Unacceptable Delays
I served on the board of the Washington Coalition for Open Government from 2011 to 2017 and saw examples even then of governments trying to hide information from the public. And before that I saw many such examples in my reporting career. It’s not getting better. Consider these examples of excessive delays in fulfilling PRA requests:
- A Seattle Times reporter requested a single document from the Seattle Police Department. Despite providing the name of the person involved and narrowing the timeframe to one week, the department said it would take 10 months to deliver the document.
- Another Times reporter asked the University of Washington for an email thread and a related report. The estimated time to fulfill this straightforward request? Nineteen months.
These examples just happen to come from the Seattle media, but represent a broader trend where agencies fail to provide timely access to records. Such delays affect any citizen, reporter or otherwise, trying to stay informed about critical issues in their communities. If you want to dig deep on what’s been going on, the Washington Coalition for Open Government’s report on the eroding Public Records Act is here: https://www.washcog.org/your-right-to-know-report
The news media’s role in this conversation is important but should not overshadow the fact that the PRA serves all of us. Journalists might be frequent users of public records, but their work amplifies the voices of citizens. When reporters uncover inefficiencies or wrongdoing, they’re acting on behalf of the public. This is a shared effort to ensure transparency and accountability in government.
What You Can Do
The Attorney General’s Office has opened a public comment period for these proposed changes to the Model Rules. This is our chance to weigh in and demand improvements that will make the PRA work better for everyone. Here’s how you can help:
- Visit the Attorney General’s rulemaking page to learn more about the proposed changes. You can see the actual changes here.
- Submit your comments by emailing agorulemaking@atg.wa.gov by Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.
I’m going to go a little off script here and suggest that if you’re not comfortable endorsing the Model Rule suggestions, just say you think the Public Records Act is important and you think governments should be held responsible for responding to requests. This is a chance to tell the AG that citizens care about the Public Records Act. Don’t feel like you have to write a big school essay or something.
So you could write something as simple as this and feel free to speak from the heart about anything you add:
“I am a citizen who thinks the government should be transparent. Please suggest rules that say governments should respond to the public as quickly as possible”
Looking Ahead: A New Opportunity with Nick Brown
As Bob Ferguson’s term ends, his successor, Nick Brown, will have the responsibility to decide whether to move forward with formal rulemaking based on the public’s feedback. If I’m Nick Brown, I’m wondering if anyone other than a couple of reporters gives a damn about the Public Records Act. That’s one reason I hope at least my regular readers, both of you, will write!
The volume and quality of comments submitted during this period will surely help shape Brown’s priorities. By speaking up at the start of his term perhaps we can ensure that improvements to the PRA remain on his agenda in 2025 and beyond.
This is a rare opportunity to strengthen the framework of the Public Records Act through concrete action. Take a moment today to send an email to agorulemaking@atg.wa.gov. Your voice can make a difference, not just for Lakewood, but for communities across Washington.
The Other Perspective
I am infamous for pointing out there are at least two sides to every story, and I’ll do that here as well. Government officials are definitely writing the Attorney General against the language. They will say it’s a burden to follow the law. Having worked in government, I understand their frustrations. For example, some individuals (and now, bots) misuse the PRA to file excessive or malicious requests that harass officials or overwhelm agencies. This abuse creates unnecessary burdens and makes it tempting to see the PRA as more trouble than it’s worth.
And yet, the PRA is essential. Democracy can’t live in secrecy. Public records ensure transparency, accountability, and trust. They’re not a luxury — they’re foundational to democracy.
Yes, responding to PRA requests is a challenge. Governments might prefer to allocate staff elsewhere, but they must prioritize the public’s right to know. The PRA is like a fire alarm in an apartment building — sometimes misused but absolutely critical. You don’t eliminate fire alarms because of bad actors, and you can’t undermine public records access for the same reason.
Governments must rise to the challenge. Serving the public’s right to know is serving the very reason for those governments.
As a former clerk-treasurer for a very small city (2 admin staff to fulfill ALL the functions of a municipality), I can say that the biggest problem with the PRA was the enormity of the retention schedules. If the SOS would pare it down to the size of Alaska’s, it would free up hours and hours of staff time.
I agree entirely that the PRA is essential, but just because a record may seem easy to produce, it does not mean it will be fast. For example, there is a certain state agency that received a request for approximately three million minutes of surveillance video. The video has to be compiled, converted to a different format, downloaded and then redacted in parts. This will take approximately three years, working someone full time and cost the agency more than $200,000. To add to the grief, the requestor admits he does not need 99% of the video. He was given the option to revise his request so he can get what he wants sooner, but he refuses. Meanwhile, every other request that comes in is put in line after this request. So, sometimes when it takes a year to get an e-mail, it’s not the agency being slow or trying to hide things.
Great context, Ray, thanks for sharing. I worked off and on at UW and have stories too – such as spending tens of many thousands of dollars of lawyer time on a massive records act request only to have the reporter never pick it up because of a newspaper strike. I wonder if the answer is for the AG and other groups to suggest more staffing – a Model Staffing rule, to use the capital letters that government is so fond of. That would be a cultural shift, but records should be public.
Thanks for the heads up Walter Neary! I just sent an e- mail. I appreciate your speaking up!
Walter, THANKS for alert and contact information.
EVERY American gov org should have a “Mission One” ethos to honor public account and transparency. That’s obviously easier said than done, but in law and regulatory direction the implicit needs explicit expression, enforcement and oversight. History shows “democracy dies in darkness;” glib but true. Strong PRA provisions are critical to account and transparency to oversight. Both are vital to confidence in the daylight integrity our government requires.
To Walter Neary,
A friend, Greg Rediske, is collecting old photos of Lakewood for a presentation. Is that something you help him with? I don’t have his permission to publish his contact information here, so could you contact me? Below is my name, which you may remember from years past. I have left my email.
Mr Walter Neary,
Thank you for yet another contribution to the citizens of Washington State, especially the City of Lakewood.
I followed your suggestion by sending my comment to the suggested email address.
I added to my comment the following verbiage.
In reaction to citizen Ray R’s comment, in The Suburban Times, I also endorse setting standards, protections, and protocols to protect government agencies from unnecessary and abusive requests.
Let’s be intelligent and sensible about transparent government, but let’s not give up transparency. If the public is in the dark about the government, dark days will follow.
Joseph Boyle