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Show Page 8 THE GARFIELD COUNTY INSIDER MARCH 15,20077 THE SUNSHINE WEEK 2007 NATIONAL INFORMATION AUDIT: Comprehensive Emergency Response Plans A project of the American Society of Newspaper Editors-Sunshine Week, the Coalition of Journalists for Open Government, the National Freedom of Information Coalition and the Society of Environmental Journalists Twenty years ago, in the wake of the world's greatest chemical plant catastrophe in Bhopal, India, Congress passed a law requiring every community to develop, update and make public plans for action in cases of chemical or hazardous materials spills. Congress made its intention clear in naming the law the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act. And it didn't just say the public had a right to see the plan; it directed each planning committee to annually notify the public that the plan had been updated and was available. Yet when hundreds of reporters, student journalists and League of Women Voters members nationwide asked recently to see these Comprehensive Emergency Response Plans (CERPs) for their communities, local officials and other custodians of the plans said "no" more than one-third of the time, and two in five provided only partial reports. In some cases, officials ran background checks on citizen auditors or sent police to follow them. The highway patrol in one state even launched an 88county alert seeking more information about one requester. Officials who denied requests frequently cited national security or terrorism concerns, despite the fact that the 1986 law provides for withholding sensitive information in what's called a Tier II report. Some agencies clearly understood the law and its intent, however. Fortyfour percent released the full report. Some of those had posted the informa- tion online; others provided the information on disc. And one official in Iowa said he was delighted to see a citizen seeking the report: "We need more awareness on what to do during an incident for the safety of everyone." Twenty BYU communications students who participated in a national public records audit were met with both resistance and helpfulness as they visited 22 of Utah's 29 counties earlier this year. Students were instructed to act as citizens only providing their names and their home addresses. Some were questioned about their motives while others were ledfromagency to agency only to prove that officials had no idea where the emergency plans were kept In Davis County, a sheriffs deputy told an auditor that the document would not be released and wondered why someone outside the area even wanted the document. "Students who were denied access were surprised by the suspicion and treatment the received at the hand of some officials," said Joel Campbell, assistant professor in the Department of Communications. "These are public documents that any citizen should be able to review. Some students felt like they were being interrogated.1' As part of a student-mentored learning project, students enrolled in Campbell's Communications 321 course were sent to counties during January to ask for a federally-mandated Comprehensive Emergency Response Plan. The plan should be available to any member of the public who requests it. Auditors chronicled the response of government officials. They contacted emergency coordinators listed on a federal Web site who have jurisdiction over the plans. Some contact information was outdated or incorrect. Campbell hopes the experience helps the journalism and public relations students in the course leam about government records access laws. Campbell serves as the chairman of the National Freedom of Information Committee of the Society of Professional Journalists. Along with the educational experience for his students, Campbell is concerned that so many county officials simply ignored records request and took no thought to even respond. "I believe the results of the audit show a great need for education about responding to records requests and following up with requestors, even if they are going to deny the request," Campbell said. "There is a great amount of ignorance about the law." At the same time, Campbell praised those who readily provided the records and waived fees for the records. If the auditors were denied access, they submitted a request under Utah's Government Records Access and Management Request explaining the document was a public record under federal law. Only two counties responded to the GRAMA request, both denying access. Other counties never responded to the GRAMA request, which under Utah law, constitutes a denial. lAuGhiNg |>OiI\l!! FAIRWAY DRIVE ACCENTS About a year ago my sister, who lives in Virginia, was talking with her four year old son, Brent. He was asking her why all their relatives from Wisconsin talk funny and sound like their noses are plugged up. "They think we have an accent," she replied. "But they have an accent, right?", Brent asked. "They talk funny?" "Everybody talks in different ways" she tried to explain. "To them, we sound like we talk very slow and all our words are d-r-a-w-n out." His eyes got big, and he whispered seriously, "Oh, no. You mean they hear funny too?" Mark drove his second shot from the fairway, not thinking he'd reach the green being a par 5 and out over 200 yards. The ball did land on the green & almost hit a fellow who was just finishing his putt. Mark went up to apologize and to explain, but the man was irate, yelling & screaming. The man charged at Mark swinging his putter. Mark who still had his 3 wood in hand, started swinging back at the man. When the ambulance and police arrived they took Mark into custody,and asked him how many times he hit the man. Mark replied, "Well I hit him eight times but you can put me down for five." NAME THE STATES The old pastor made it to a practice to visit the parish school one day a week. He walked into the 4th grade class, where the children were studying the states, and asked them how many states they could name. They came up with about 40 names. He jokingly told them that in his day students knew the names of all the states. One lad snickered, "Yes, but in those days there were only 13".... At eight Utah counties, officials provided access to the document, with most providing copies at not cost to the auditors. For example, Tooele County officials provided the entire plan on a CD-ROM. Auditors also found clerks at Wasatch, Piute, and Sevier counties to be helpful and responsive. In seven counties, auditors were denied access to the record. In three other counties, the records request was denied in part. In those counties, officials followed up to the initial request with summaries of the documents or with sensitive information removed. For example, Box Elder County's Sheriff provided a "summarization" of the plan. In another eight Utah counties, including Utah, Weber and Salt Lake counties, the records were not readily available. For example, in Salt Lake County a student traveled between agencies for four hours before giving up on the request. In Utah County, the student auditor shuttled between two agencies and officials never responded to a records request. The results of the national audit, conducted under the auspices of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, were to be released during National Sunshine Week, March 11 -17 via the Associated Press. Citizens of Garfield County should feel reassured that Garfield County was able to provide all documentation requested and were very cooperative in responding to the audit.. MARCH WALKS & TALKS Mark your calendar for the kickoffof Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments' 2007 Walks & Talks series of lectures and field trips. Watch for notices every month. This year, programs are being offered on a regular basis as well as special guest speakers and trip leaders. All programs are free and co-sponsored by Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners. Coffee with a Ranger 2nd & 4th Saturdays; March 10 & 24 Time: 8:00 a.m. • Place: Calf Creek Campground Plan your adventure for the day over a cup of coffee or hot chocolate with a ranger Leave No Trace March 29 Time: 9 a.m. to 11a.m. • Place: Escalante Visitor Center Learn more than what it means to simply "pack in it and pack it out" during this in-depth workshop. You'll learn how to tread lightly over the land without a trace. Participants will receive an official Leave No Trace certificate for their participation in this workshop. |