Oklahoma means business when it comes to transparency in government. We must uphold strong and transparent government practices to allow Oklahomans to clearly see the work of their public servants and to have the power to hold them accountable.

During Sunshine Week and all throughout the year, I am committed to building trust in government through open meetings and open records. One of America’s Founding Fathers, James Madison, said, “Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own governors must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives.” Here, we see a great axiom: to maintain a free society, we must have a transparent government that does not hide knowledge of its dealings but gives it to our “governors” – the people whom we serve.

The American people deserve to know what their government is doing and how it is getting things done. Under my leadership, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office has led the way in transparency, making tremendous strides toward opening our government for all to see.

As Attorney General, I have taken several steps to enforce the Open Records and Open Meetings Acts. I’ve also added a public access counselor to my office, who works with government agencies to ensure strict compliance with open meetings and open records. Since we created that position, the public access counselor has fielded 514 complaints and resolved 431 of them.

In addition, our state Legislature has armed us with a new tool. My office now has the authority to seek legal enforcement when government entities fail to comply with open record laws. For too long, bad actors have been denying you, the citizens, the right to access public records. Now, any Oklahoman can file a complaint with my office via an online form, and my Public Access Counselor Unit will review the complaint and provide expert analysis. If the issue can’t be resolved, then we’ll offer mediation services at no cost. I’ve been proud to work with the Legislature on this bill – and others – to strengthen our government transparency laws.

Finally, my office partners annually with the Oklahoma Press Association to offer training on the Open Records and Open Meetings Act in several cities across the state. Every year that I have been in office, we have offered these free seminars to make all citizens aware of these important laws. Knowledge is power, and I want our citizens to be empowered.

I encourage public officials at every level to follow Oklahoma’s example. Shining maximum levels of light on the work of the government is key to building and preserving trust between citizens and their government. I will always fight for a government that operates with transparency and integrity and to ensure that public officials are held accountable to the people they serve.