Why are we always last?
Jul 26th, 2007 by JamieB
House Bill 976, which passed unanimously in the lower chamber but has not yet been voted on in the senate, mandates that Pennsylvania put all its laws on the Internet where they can be accessed for free.
It turns out that Pennsylvania is the ONLY state that does not currently have that program for its citizens.
Here is the editorial reaction to that from a couple of newspapers:
⢠The Altoona Mirror
There ought to be a law to ensure the public has free online access to the laws of the commonwealth.
But for that to happen, the Senate and the governor need to act.
Last month, the state House unanimously approved a bill that would require Pennsylvania to put all of its statutes on a free Internet site.
Such an effort is not unusual.
Forty-nine states have made their statutes available on free Internet sites. Pennsylvania is the only exception. If someone wants to do legal research on a Pennsylvania statute, he must buy or borrow legal books or visit a law or state library.
In an era in which online, 24-7 access to information is the norm and the state is trying to lure more high-technology businesses and research facilities, Pennsylvania is far behind the curve.
Rep. Lisa Bennington, D-Allegheny, who sponsored House Bill 976, sees free online access to Pennsylvania’s statutes as an important part of government reform. The Associated Press quotes her as saying, “We need to have greater transparency in government and in our laws.”
We agree.
Senators should move quickly to consider HB 976.
Your tax dollars paid to create and enforce the laws. You should not have to pay again to view the statutes at your leisure. It’s time for Pennsylvania to catch up to the rest of the nation.
⢠Beaver County Times
Knowledge is power.
That goes a long way toward explaining why Pennsylvania’s leaders drag their feet when it comes to giving state residents access to information.
On Friday, the commonwealth’s 79 groups of consolidated statutes, which cover everything from aeronautics to zoning, were posted on a publicly available web site (www.legis.state.pa.us).
This is not worth celebrating. If anything, it’s an embarrassment. The Associated Press reported that Pennsylvania had been the only state that did not maintain a public Web site that gives people the ability to do their own legal research without purchasing legal textbooks or visiting a law library.
But that’s in keeping with the keep-them-in-the-dark approach Pennsylvania’s elected and appointed officials have taken toward giving people access to what is routinely considered to be public information in many other states.
It’s why Pennsylvania has among the weakest open meetings and public records laws in the nation.
Putting the consolidated statutes online represents a tiny step forward in a journey that still has miles to go before the people of Pennsylvania gain routine access to information they need to judge those who are governing them.
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If the Pennsylvania legislature lags behind that of every other state in granting access to bills it has already passed and the governor has signed into law, is it any wonder why we have such difficulty getting access to any other public records?