A Montana district court judge required the Legislature to allow the public access to all behind-the-scenes information about bills in the drafting process on Tuesday. The decision restores a government transparency rule that’s been in place for 30 years.
District Court Judge John Kutzman sided with a coalition of news organizations and members of the public that argued Montanans have a right to access communications between lawmakers and private citizens about draft bills.
The ruling requires the Legislative Services Division to grant the public access to the complete contents of a bill’s so-called “junque” file — information like who requested the bill and other details that help reporters and the public understand the motivation behind it.
Anne Hedges is policy director at the Montana Environmental Information Center. The organization was part of the lawsuit that made junque files public 30 years ago, and the most recent challenge that made them public again.
“The public needs access to its government, and without public access to government, decisions get made behind closed doors,” Hedges told MTPR. “We didn’t want that to occur then, we don’t want it to occur now.”
The Legislative Services Division argued a separate court decision last summer required them to give lawmakers the choice whether to allow their communications with private citizens about bills to be made public. Judge Kutzman disagreed, writing this case “is about documents held in public files maintained on public servers by public employees at public expense.”
Plaintiffs in the suit include the Montana Broadcasters Association, which includes MTPR. Kutzman temporarily blocked Legislative Services’ policy while the court considers its constitutionality.
In an email to MTPR, Legislative Services Division director Jerry Howe said the organization is reviewing the decision and has “not yet decided” whether an appeal is necessary.
