Jackson Jambalaya

It’s pretty wordy but read this 1975 “legislative declaration” for the Mississippi Open Meetings Act:

“It being essential to the fundamental philosophy of the American constitutional form of representative government and to the maintenance of a democratic society that public business be performed in an open and public manner, and that citizens be advised of and be aware of the performance of public officials and the deliberations and decisions that go into the making of public policy, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the State of Mississippi that the formation and determination of public policy is public business and shall be conducted at open meetings except as otherwise provided herein.” So states the legislative declaration of the Mississippi Open Meetings Act adopted in 1975.

In 1983 the Mississippi Supreme Court more succinctly opined: "However inconvenient openness may be to some, it is the legislatively decreed public policy of this state."

In 2012, Gov. Phil Bryant simplified it to eight words: “Transparency in government is critical to its integrity.” In 2020, Gov. Tate Reeves added, “Transparency is more important now than ever.”

Given the above support, why is government transparency still an issue facing the 2024 Legislature?

The Supreme Court has ruled that gatherings of public body officials constituting a quorum must be open. The Republican caucus, which includes more than a quorum of House members, met regularly in closed sessions where major policy issues were debated and largely decided. After a reporter was barred from a meeting, a ruling was sought from the state Ethics Commission. In late 2022, the Commission illogically ruled that the House of Representatives is not a “public body” subject to the Open Meetings Act.

Despite Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann’s commitment to transparency, his chairman of the Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee, Sen. John A. Polk, killed a bill to close this loophole last January. In September, the Mississippi Free Press filed a lawsuit seeking a court opinion on the issue.

Notably, incoming Speaker Jason White who will be saddled with the issue, was selected as the GOP’s choice for speaker at a closed caucus session last month.

There are other issues with the Open Meetings Act. Saying it’s “kind of crazy” that decisions made in secret meetings still stand, State Auditor Shad White wants the law strengthened to invalidate such decisions. “You should have to go back in public and you should have to have the debate and vote out in the open,” White told WDAM.

Notably, his recommendation does not address secret meetings by a quorum of legislators.

“Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed” – John 3:20.

Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson.