Coronavirus pandemic is not enough reason for Fresno City Hall to suspend transparency

The emergency law passed by the Fresno City Council Thursday in response to the coronavirus pandemic had many worthy aspects: no evictions of tenants who might have lost jobs due to the outbreak and cannot now pay rent; no price gouging on needed goods; no eviction of commercial renters whose businesses might be shut down; no shut-off of utilities for nonpayment; foreclosures of homeowners and businesses impacted by the pandemic will not be allowed.

But tucked inside the legalese was a quiet sentence with significant implications:

“Non-essential City services may be suspended, including but not limited to responding to requests under the California Public Records Act.”

With those simple words, City Hall has now hung a closed sign before anyone wanting to better understand decisions and actions taken by Fresno’s elected leaders and city staff.

That this surfaces at a time of community emergency shows it is even more imperative that the government be transparent and the public have access to records. The council should bring back the emergency ordinance and strike the public-records section out.

Public records sought

It is no secret that most cities dislike having to comply with the public records act. For one thing, it chews up a lot of staff time. Some requests involve workers having to retrieve voluminous amounts of emails or paper records.

Once the domain of news reporters, the act is now more widely used. From activists with points of view to average citizens who oppose a neighborhood project, public record requests are frequent.

At times, the information revealed by the public record shows government not acting properly. By fulfilling requests, cities allow the antiseptic of transparency to clean out misdeeds or mistakes.

The fact is the Public Records Act remains the law, and it furthers the overall goals of democracy.

Unknowns abound

How long will the coronavirus emergency last in Fresno? No one knows. But until the emergency is rescinded, the city may back-burner or ignore important information requests.

What about public record requests already made but not yet fulfilled? Will City Hall complete those requests? An answer was not forthcoming.

Unfortunately, Fresno is not alone in stopping fulfillment of requests. Fremont won’t take requests until city offices reopen after the coronavirus emergency is declared over, according to the Los Angeles Times.

First Amendment Coalition Executive Director David Snyder told the Times that Los Altos and Martinez, two Bay Area cities, have taken similar stances.

That the suspensions come during Sunshine Week was ironic. Sunshine Week focuses attention on the public’s right to know about how government conducts its business. This is impossible without access to public records.

Character in crisis

Fresno’s elected officials have shown strong leadership in recent days in trying to lessen the potential impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mayor Lee Brand called a citywide emergency on Monday; two days later the council approved an urgency measure that urged residents to shelter inside their homes.

But in this instance, the council has failed to keep sacred the public’s right to timely information from its government. This should be corrected immediately.