Editorials

A transparent local government matters

We appreciate the commitment to transparency that Lycoming County Commissioners Rick Mirabito and Scott Metzger expressed at the most recent commissioners' meeting.

"We'll be fair and we'll tell taxpayers how the monies are being spent," Metzger said. "We're going to make sure that things are transparent."

Mirabito decried "depriving the public from information on a timely basis about how government officials spend their tax dollars."

They are correct.

As the Sun-Gazette reported on April 1, our staff had asked the county for salaries for three positions which had recently been approved for salary increases, as salaries for public-sector employees, paid with taxpayers' dollars, are clearly and unambiguously public record. At the time, the two county employees most relevant to the records in question declined to provide the salaries, citing concerns about personally identifying information.

The Williamsport Sun-Gazette filed right-to-know requests. The county granted the requests for two of the salaries and explained the position for the third salary is at this time vacant -- which we find to be a reasonable explanation.

We reported on our informal request, the denial and subsequent right-to-know request, with an explanation by an attorney who specializes in matters of public information on why concerns about personally identifying information are simply not strong enough to deny taxpayers knowledge of how their money is spent.

And we are now glad to report that commissioners Metzger and Mirabito share our desire to see our county government operate in proverbial sunlight and will work with staff to clarify the importance of transparency.

We are glad not because this is a victory for us or for the media, but because it's a victory for every county resident who deserves to know how their tax dollars are spent.