TRENTON – At a news conference at the Statehouse today, Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg and Senate President Steve Sweeney renewed the push for bills sponsored by the Majority Leader to modernize the State’s open government laws and ensure better compliance with good government practices which promote transparency and accountability.
“Since I’ve introduced these bills a few years ago, I’ve received numerous objections from individuals in local and county government who believe that living up to their responsibility for accountable, transparent government represents an unfair burden,” said Majority Leader Weinberg, D-Bergen. “These bills are only intended to modernize and strengthen the existing open government laws on the books, and public officials at all levels should already be doing their best to fulfill their obligations to be accountable to the taxpaying public. We have to recognize that, first and foremost, we serve the public, and the public’s interest is best-served by having access to the product and proceedings of their government.”
“New Jersey residents pay among the highest taxes in the nation, and they deserve to know how their tax money is being spent,” said Senate President Sweeney, D-Gloucester, Cumberland and Salem. “By updating the Open Public Meetings Act and the Open Public Records Act to reflect the way we communicate with each other in the modern world, we’re making it easier for taxpayers to access that information. I commend Senator Weinberg for pushing for these bills to ensure that the intent of open government is realized in the 21st Century.”
