AN EDITORIAL BY
LAWRENCE SOBCZAK
PUBLISHER
To say that Romeo has the most ridiculous Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) policy I have ever seen in my 30 plus years as a journalist is an understatement.
Under a policy concocted by Romeo Village President Christine Malzahn and Clerk Katherine Trapp, board of trustee members have to file a FOIA request for documents they need to do their jobs.
Trustees, colloquially known as village council members, are elected to review documents so the rest of us don’t have to do it.
It is an orderly and deliberative way to conduct the business of government and it is the basis for representative democracy.
The trustees ARE the government body so how can they request the information from themselves?
One has to question whether Malzahn’s and Trapp’s bizarre FOIA policy is an incompetent interpretation of the law or if it is an attempt to block information from trustees. Or both.
To make matters worse, Malzahn and Trapp have used the policy to publicly berate, ridicule and attack trustees, particularly Zach Fowler, Justin Parker and Meagan Poznanski, when they request more documentation about issues before the council.
It makes one wonder if Malzahn and Trapp trying to restrict, discourage and delay Fowler, Parker and Poznanski from asking questions and receiving information vital to their jobs. It feels like another way Malzahn and Trapp try to keep everyone, including the council, in the dark.
If Malzahn and Trapp improperly claim that FOIA laws apply to trustees, they can illegitimately use the law to delay providing the documents for up to 15 days.
Do any of the other 255 villages, 275 cities or 1,240 townships in Michigan make their trustees or council members file a FOIA request or purposely delay the dissemination of information to its board members?
I’m not really going out on a limb — the answer is no.
You may ask, doesn’t the law say everyone has to file a FOIA request to look at or receive a copy of a government document?
The answer is no.
It’s the other way around — the 46-year-old law was designed as a requirement of elected officials and bureaucrats to provide documents when requested either informally or formally to the public.
Michigan’s FOIA law was enacted in 1976, a direct response to the Watergate era when it became evident that government needed to operate in full public view.
In normal situations, the public fills out a FOIA request form as merely a formality to make sure a document request does not somehow fall through the cracks. A FOIA form is not a requirement under the law.
My experience with requesting documents from government bodies, entities and agencies, other than Romeo during the past four years, has been positive.
Usually, the clerk or administrator will direct me to the bulletin board or exact location on the website where the information is already available.
Sometimes the information is already on table with other documents. Other times, they immediately hand me a binder to browse through.
On more than one occasion, I have had a clerk tell me something to the effect of “stand right there, I have a copy of that document in a file on my desk. I will make you a copy real quick.”
In other words, the information in other communities is almost always already posted, easily accessible to the public or readily available to retrieve. There is usually no five to 15 day waiting period.
So, what can Romeo trustees do to improve access to the documents they need to do their jobs?
The council members could file a lawsuit and probably win. That costs money and takes time.
A simpler solution is for the voters in Romeo to elect a new president and a new clerk as well as change the composition of the board of trustees to one that supports openness of local government.
Meagan Poznanski, a candidate for village president, and Angela Trombley-Goralski, a candidate for village clerk, have promised that they will end this bizarre and restrictive FOIA policy. Trustee candidates Zach Fowler, Shelley Rosso and Sharon Smith said they support and promote transparency in government.
Absentee voting for the election in Romeo is already underway.
You can register and vote by visiting the Washington Township clerk’s office if you live south of St. Clair Street or the Bruce Township clerk’s office if you live north of St. Clair Street.
Traditional in person voting is 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 8.
More information about registering and voting in the election is available at www.michigan.gov/vote or at your township clerk’s office.
