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NEWS ADVISORY April 26, 2004 EFF appeals public records ruling OLYMPIA – On Friday, April 23, the Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF) filed to appeal a March 26 Superior Court ruling that established a discriminatory public records policy. The ruling requires the foundation to submit all requests for information related to Boeing's 7E7 to the attorney general's office for review and approval. The decision affects only EFF and was handed down by Thurston County Superior Court Judge Christine Pomeroy. The foundation believes it violates both the letter and spirit of the state's public records law. "It cost our organization hours of staff time and thousands of dollars to force disclosure of important public details related to the governor's multi-billion dollar deal with Boeing," said Jason Mercier, EFF's budget analyst. "State officials involved in the deal weren't happy to be exposed to public scrutiny, and this new ruling essentially grants them immunity from EFF." The decision was a response to EFF's lawsuit against the state, which requested fines and penalties for public records violations, as well as the release of nine redacted pages related to the details of the Boeing deal. Both of EFF's requests were denied. The state and Boeing claim the redacted pages contain trade secrets, but made the same claim about eight pages of details related to the taxpayer-funded Boeing training center, which were released three days before the judge was scheduled to review them. "The amount taxpayers are being asked to spend is not a trade secret," said Jason Mercier, EFF's budget analyst. "All government deals should be made out in the open. Genuine trade secrets should be protected, but the amount of tax dollars spent shouldn't be part of the mystery." The foundation is not certain when the case will be heard by the Division II Court of Appeals, which is based in Tacoma. "It'll likely be a long process, but we don't see any alternative
if we want to protect the integrity of our open records laws," said
Mercier. "That's the only way citizens can hold their government accountable." Example of page determined by judge to contain trade secrets Judge says state can discriminate against EFF Judge's order regarding EFF public records requests EFF declaration listing examples of CTED's bad faith Boeing Employment Resource Center details 12/19/03 to 2/23/04 Boeing Employment Resource Center details 2/24/04 Contact: Booker Stallworth | Communications Director | 360.956.3482
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1 Part Honesty; 2 Parts Arrogance At a March 23, 2005, House Appropriations hearing on a bill to gut the voter-approved I-601 spending limit, Rep. Jim McIntire (D) asked a supporter of I-601’s two-third supermajority requirement for the legislature to raise taxes the following question: "Can you name a time when we [legislators] have actually not just set it [supermajority requirement] aside by majority vote? I mean, this is in many respects a procedural motion that has no bearing. It’s a statutory constraint that cannot constrain any legislature that chooses as a majority to set it aside . . . have we ever used a supermajority [to raise taxes]?" - Rep. Jim McIntire (D - 46) Despite the arrogance of some state officials, Washington's constitution is clear: "All political power is inherent in the people..." |
