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The Arkansas Press Association has released a statement following Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders special session to reform Arkansas’s Freedom of Information Act.
During a Friday press conference in Little Rock, Sanders stated changes to the state’s FOIA law were needed to protect her family and bring the state in line with federal FOIA laws. Sanders claimed the reforms would do nothing to lessen Arkansas’s Freedom of Information Act.
The draft bill lists District 23 Senator Scott Flippo of Mountain Home as a sponsor. House Rep. David Ray, another sponsor of the bill, filled the bill on Friday and a vote is expected to go to the floor later today.
The full statement from the Arkansas Press Association reads:
The Arkansas Press Association agrees that the security of our elected officials, their spouses and their children should be taken seriously and, where appropriate, sensitive information as it pertains to security should be protected. If that was the only focus of this bill, we would certainly understand the governor’s reasoning for calling a special session. But it’s not.
This bill goes far beyond the goal of protecting our public officials and their families. If this bill passes, it will drastically weaken Arkansas FOIA laws and the public’s access to information. For all intents and purposes, this bill will eliminate the ability to hold our government accountable by shielding processes that provide essential context for decisions that affect millions of Arkansans. There must be transparency in government processes and accountability as to how taxpayer dollars are spent.
Furthermore, the APA adamantly disagrees with the notion that this bill, in its entirety, constitutes an emergency. Security is just a small slice of an otherwise larger, transparency-killing piece of legislation.
The APA has agreed to participate in a working group that has been tasked with reviewing and recommending changes to FOIA for the 2025 general session. This group met for the very first time today. It’s disheartening this group has had no time to review or give recommendations on these momentous changes being proposed. Our association’s participation in this group demonstrates our willingness to be reasonable and to seek common ground. However, to fundamentally change these laws in a three-day special session with a bill that was drafted just this week is imprudent.
This bill is far-reaching, applying to all state offices – not only in the present but for future administrations as well. Do we really want a blackout of information about how decisions are arrived upon in state government?
We hope that the members of the General Assembly will choose to stand not with the APA or the Governor but with their constituents who have a right to know how their government operates.
