Sunshine Laws Quotes

In the administration of justice all proceedings shall be public and oral to the widest possible extent.

Open rules! Open standards! Open findings! Open precedents!

I had always believed government was not a fungus: It could survive in sunshine.

Publicity is justly commended as a remedy for social and industrial diseases. Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policemen.

I am pleased to report that Texas is known for having one of the strongest set of open government laws in our Nation. And ever since that experience, I have long believed that our federal government could use 'a little Texas sunshine.'

The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created

The Senate must stop doing so much of its business in secret, behind closed doors…. A bill that affects the nation’s security has been held up for months by a secret hold and cannot see the light of day…. There is no accountability…. The person who exercises a hold ought to be identified…. Secret holds have been the bane of the United States Senate for decades. So much for sunshine in the United States Senate.

No one really knows how many [SBU] records are covered or for how long, and there are practically none of the limits that we do have in the security classification world.

Many state parole boards claim exemptions from state sunshine laws that would be unthinkable for other government officials.