Senate panel delays action on records bill

• By MARSHA SHULER
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Apr 24, 2008 - Page: 4A - UPDATED: 12:10 a.m.

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A Senate panel Wednesday postponed action on Jindal administration-backed legislation after opponents argued it would make more government records off limits to the public.

The legislation would affect the law that exempts records in the “custody or control of the governor in the usual course of the duties and business of his office” from the public records law.

Gov. Bobby Jindal’s executive counsel, Jimmy Faircloth, promoted Senate Bill 629 as a way to guarantee more openness.

But a state senator and a newspaper executive said the legislation flies in the face of the transparency in government that Jindal has made the cornerstone of his administration.

Sen. Lydia Jackson, D-Shreveport, and The Advocate’s executive editor, Carl Redman, said the bill would instead close state records that are public today and make secret more of the operations of the Governor’s Office.

The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee delayed action on the measure as questions mounted.

“If this body is satisfied with existing law, we can leave the law alone,” Faircloth said at meeting’s end.

As testimony began, Faircloth told the committee that the public records exemption for the governor covers not only everything in the Governor’s Office but information in the custody of all state agencies, cabinet level officials and some boards and commissions.

Faircloth said the legislation “shrinks … dramatically” the governor’s public records exception.

“This governor made it clear he is committed to this kind of transparency,” said Faircloth.

Jindal proposed making exempt records of his executive counsel, chief of staff, director of policy, press secretary, legislative director, director of boards and commissions, director of constituent services, communications director, director of scheduling, director of intergovernmental affairs and their staffs.

Also off-limits would be records of the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, the military department and certain records dealing with economic development pursuits.

Redman said under current law the openness exception only applies to records in the custody and control of the governor.