Last week's Forum featured a series of stories regarding an public records audit. The audit was conducted by the Ohio Coalition for Open Government, an arm of the Ohio Newspaper Association, to test whether local governments follow the law when regular citizens make records requests.

Without identifying themselves, more than 90 individuals from 43 newspapers, including the Enquirer, two radio stations, the Associated Press, the University of Dayton and Ohio University asked public entities in all 88 Ohio counties for six documents. The following letters address the issue.

Government exists to serve people

Kudos for printing the story "It's your right to know," concerning the public's right to government records. Too often government hides behind its systems, not necessarily to deprive the public of information, but it is far easier to conduct the public's business for the public rather then involve the public in how it operates. Now we need local governments to open up their procedures so that the public is involved in how decisions are made, whether it is an appointed or elected body. While it is efficient to limit public debate and have appointed boards make decisions not subject to referendum, this is not in the interest of the public.

When will government get it in their collective heads that they exist at the pleasure of the public?

Mary Lou Rose, Montgomery

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School boards are most reluctant

As I read the article, "It's your right to know," Enquirer, June 13, I began to notice a pattern. Of all the government agencies noted in the article where "public" information was requested, school boards were the ones most reluctant to provide the requested information.

What do the school boards have to hide? Could they be hiding what we already suspect, that they are indeed spending our money without much regard for accountability, yet they claim to be serving the "best" interest of our children?

Steve Boone, Mason

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Punish offices that don't comply

I greatly appreciate the effort of the auditors from The Cincinnati Enquirer and across the state who surveyed and reported the overwhelming failure of public servants acting in dereliction of their duties by utterly refusing or deterring public access to records ("It's your right to know," June 13).

Over the last 10 years working and volunteering as an advocate on behalf of Ohio citizens, I have experienced first hand both the illegal withholding of records and the asserted efforts of those who understand the need to comply. (As well as those who refuse to release to persons who are the actual subject of the record, their own records.)

Our educational systems falsely, knowingly and regularly claim student confidentiality and "reasonable" time as a means to restrict parents' access to records that disclose public information regarding school financial matters, policy and statistics without reason or justification. Effectively denying parents their rights by routinely forcing the hand of citizens to take burdensome legal actions as an only means of address.

Courts need to take swift and aggressive actions against institutions that refuse to comply, present false barriers or exercise an unreasonable amount of time to retrieve records that are required to be kept in an organized manner as to facilitate public access.

Each county needs to establish a public records officer whose duty it is to facilitate and ensure the dissemination of information, track the instances of non compliance and assist citizens in the processes of legal redress against offenders.

State elected officials need to criminalize the obstruction of these basic rights and provide for severe civil penalties against the individuals and entities that violate the rights of any citizen attempting to exercise such rights.

Carrie Davis, President, Child Advocacy for Rights and Equity Inc., Groesbeck