Here’s my Letter to the Editor in today’s Union Leader:
To the Editor:
"We like to pretend our government is open and transparent, but is it? In the category of “Public Access to Information,” according to a 2015 Center for Public Integrity study, New Hampshire ranked 49th out of 50 states.
Several bills designed to make improvements were killed this legislative session. I sat in on testimony and was shocked to learn the AG’s office dedicates meaningful resources to redacting what should be public information. How Orwellian!
The AGs office recently offered Right-to-Know training to the Home Education Advisory Council. Sounds great, right? But, this training session was not open to the public. Why is the AG’s office doing training of Sunshine laws in secret?
I am running as a Republican for State Senate in District 20. I am a board member of Right to Know NH, a volunteer organization dedicated to improving government transparency. We also offer RTK training and services. You can learn more at: https://righttoknownh.wordpress.com.
How can we hold our officials accountable if we don’t even know what they are doing? We can’t, and the system is designed to protect the government, not you.
As your senator, I will work to pass laws with teeth that improve our Right to Know. I will also disclose my votes, regardless of whether roll call was taken. I promise to be accountable to you, the taxpayer. Our government belongs to us, we pay for it, and we have the Right to Know what it is up to!
Sincerely,
Carla Gericke