The N. C. Open Government Coalition is reacting today to news that 63 percent of the citizens polled are not familiar with the state’s public records and open meetings laws.
The Elon University Poll surveyed 620 randomly sampled residents and found that while more than half believe open government laws are important, just 37 percent are aware the state has these laws on the books.
“One bit of good news to the coalition is that since its formation in 2006, the level of awareness of open government in the state has risen from 26 percent to 37 percent. We are moving toward our goal of everyone in this state understanding the value of open government to the health of our state’s democracy,” said Connie Book, director of the N.C. Open Government’s educational arm, the Sunshine Center.
The Elon University Poll also found that almost a third of citizens in the state reject the idea that closed meetings and records allow the government to operate more efficiently.
Even though residents were not necessarily aware of the law, more than half, 52 percent, indicated accessing public documents.
“The numbers illustrate to the state’s open government coalition that we still have a lot of work to do to educate citizens about their right of access under the law,” Book said. “As one editor said recently, ‘Sunshine Laws are a lot like the lights in a room. You don’t realize how much you need them until they burn out.’”
Book spoke yesterday at a press conference in Raleigh, N.C., encouraging the legislature to move toward complete transparency by providing electronic access via television and the Web to the meetings of the general assembly and committee rooms.