Unlawful law students
SBA must obey public records laws like everyone else
By: Editorial Board
Issue date: 11/28/07 Section: Opinion
It might not be surprising that in one of the states judged to be among the worst places to access public records laws, a public institution has been accused of poor record keeping and withholding information.
The Student Bar Association, a UNC law school organization responsible for allocating law student funds, is not acting in compliance with state public records laws.
It is unacceptable that a law school organization - or any organization for that matter - would treat state public records laws as suggestions rather than requirements. The SBA needs to rectify this situation at once.
The issue arose when a member of the American Constitution Society requested and was refused documentation of the budget requests of other groups vying for the $7,000 that SBA had available for distribution.
The society received only $75 of the $400 it requested.
SBA hesitated in releasing the information because the documents contained sources of private funding to student organizations.
The simple solution, which is the route SBA should have taken to avoid this mess, is to black out all private information in the documents.
But SBA's problems with open records law run a little deeper than that.
There are no records of how members vote, which means that law students have no way of ensuring their officials are representing their interests.
In addition, the practice of asking students to leave public meetings walks a fine line of acceptability - while they aren't technically in the wrong, it isn't a practice that fosters a trust of government intentions.
N.C. Public Records Law G.S. 132 says that all state records are public, unless otherwise specified by other laws.
Officials, therefore, are required to produce public records for any individual or organization that makes a request.
The intention of public records laws is simply to keep states accountable for their actions. Because UNC is a public institution, its offices are held to the same standards as other state bodies.
And because their money supplies the SBA's budget, students have a right to know how their fees are being allocated.
While the SBA spends time deliberating its conundrum, we hope it realizes that this matter has a simple answer that won't cost it two seconds' thought. Public records disclosures are required of all N.C. institutions, and that includes UNC.
The Student Bar Association, a UNC law school organization responsible for allocating law student funds, is not acting in compliance with state public records laws.
It is unacceptable that a law school organization - or any organization for that matter - would treat state public records laws as suggestions rather than requirements. The SBA needs to rectify this situation at once.
The issue arose when a member of the American Constitution Society requested and was refused documentation of the budget requests of other groups vying for the $7,000 that SBA had available for distribution.
The society received only $75 of the $400 it requested.
SBA hesitated in releasing the information because the documents contained sources of private funding to student organizations.
The simple solution, which is the route SBA should have taken to avoid this mess, is to black out all private information in the documents.
But SBA's problems with open records law run a little deeper than that.
There are no records of how members vote, which means that law students have no way of ensuring their officials are representing their interests.
In addition, the practice of asking students to leave public meetings walks a fine line of acceptability - while they aren't technically in the wrong, it isn't a practice that fosters a trust of government intentions.
N.C. Public Records Law G.S. 132 says that all state records are public, unless otherwise specified by other laws.
Officials, therefore, are required to produce public records for any individual or organization that makes a request.
The intention of public records laws is simply to keep states accountable for their actions. Because UNC is a public institution, its offices are held to the same standards as other state bodies.
And because their money supplies the SBA's budget, students have a right to know how their fees are being allocated.
While the SBA spends time deliberating its conundrum, we hope it realizes that this matter has a simple answer that won't cost it two seconds' thought. Public records disclosures are required of all N.C. institutions, and that includes UNC.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
concerned
posted 11/28/07 @ 10:08 AM EST
I find it concerning that everyone that doesn't have a law degree or experience finds this issue to be very simple, yet school's counsel made it clear that it was a tough issue. (Continued…)
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