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TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Nia H. Gill which would prohibit public entities from entering into confidential court settlements in which the public institution is named as a party of a lawsuit was unanimously approved by the Senate today.

“The people of New Jersey have a fundamental right to know the actions of their government, whether in the Statehouse, city hall, or courtroom,” said Senator Gill, D-Essex and Passaic. “This bill extends the reach of OPRA to include court settlements in which a public institution or employee is named. When taxpayers are footing the bill for these settlements, they deserve to know, and transparency and accountability must be a priority in everything we do as elected representatives of the people.”

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senator Nia H. Gill which would prohibit public entities from entering into confidential court settlements in which the public institution is named as a party of a lawsuit was unanimously approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee today.

“In this State, we operate under the assumption that open, transparent government is absolutely necessary to protect the peoples’ interests,” said Senator Gill, D-Essex. “The people’s right to know should always be paramount, not only in legislative hearings or executive action, but in nearly all aspects of governance and public decision-making This bill would go a long way to preserve the sanctity of public scrutiny and ensure transparency and accountability at all levels of government.”