School superintendents hit the books over public records law

[TexasTowelie]

A university researcher earlier this year set out to learn more about the pay differences between male and female educators in Massachusetts. Instead, he got a lesson in stonewalling under the state’s public records law, after more than 200 school systems initially ignored his requests for information.

Now, the superintendents of those school districts are being told to sit down for their own lessons.

The Secretary of State’s Office took the unusual step last week of ordering them to undergo training on how to respond to public records requests. The sheer number of affected districts makes the ruling one of the broadest single actions the state has taken to enforce records laws.

The state also directed the school systems to respond to the requests made by a research assistant for Joseph P. Price, an economics professor at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah.

Read more: http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2016/07/19/school-superintendents-get-lesson-state-public-records-law/eYFuKi5nukaZE1kx5ltMEM/story.html

[Jackieduda]

1. Good wake up call

I have known at least one person fined for this

[merrily]

2. For a supposedly liberal state, MA has some conservative qualities.

This year is the first year Massachusetts residents will have more than one day to vote and some cities and towns hassle voters about absentee ballots. Every time I read how red states did not allow enough days or enough weekend days for voting, I just gulped.

Massachusetts has also had the worst laws in the nation on access to public records, even though the article says "one of the weakest." From the article linked in the OP:

The ruling comes against a backdrop of pointed criticism over Massachusetts’ much-maligned public records law, long regarded as one of the weakest in the nation because it imposed few consequences upon violators while allowing public agencies to charge excessive fees. A new law going into effect in January will limit fees, enable judges to force violators to pay lawyers’ fees, and provide agencies more time to process requests.

But some critics say the changes don’t go far enough.

And they're not even complying with the weakest law in the country? Embarrassing!