Sunday, March 14, 2010
Editorial: Citizens embrace government sunshine
More New River Valley residents are using open government.
From the RoundTable blog
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Most often when we write about open government, it is to rail against yet another attempt to withhold information from the public. Today, the start of Sunshine Week, we offer something different. Today, we commend citizens of the New River Valley who have taken advantage of the open government they have.
Some of our evidence is anecdotal. We attend many local government meetings and watch others on television or online. Over the last few years, it appears the number of citizens attending those meetings has increased.
When hot topics were on the agenda, people turned out in the past. It's the other meetings that show a difference, the ones where elected officials discuss the more mundane matters of governance. When citizens are there, it reminds elected officials who they serve and that they cannot do whatever they want without someone noticing.
Local governments have made it easier for citizens to watch, too. Blacksburg, for example, has long broadcast town council meetings both online and on local cable television. Montgomery County supervisors began doing the same this year. We hope more follow their lead.
Citizens have embraced digital access to government records, too.
A survey of visitors to the Christiansburg, Blacksburg and Montgomery County Web sites revealed clear upward trends in use.
Last month, Montgomery County had 17,938 visits, more than double the monthly average in 2006. Some of the most recent public use almost certainly is thanks to improvements implemented in a December site redesign.
Christiansburg overhauled its own site in April. Before then, the site was a wasteland, not even worth visiting. Today, more citizens every month find valuable information.
Blacksburg has seen impressive growth in recent years, too. Prior to a May 2008 redesign, it typically had 35,000 to 45,000 visitors in a month. Now it regularly tops 70,000.
They are citizens intent on finding out what their government is doing. They want meeting agendas and minutes, community announcements, proposed ordinances and more. They want, and the Freedom of Information Act says they deserve, information.
Open government is only as good as the people who avail themselves of that access, and we're glad to see more and more people around these parts doing just that.
