ABSTRACT
Public officials sometimes seek to hide documents from prying eyes or close their official meetings to curious citizens. Such acts of secrecy taken at taxpayer-supported institutions may be a violation of law. Unclassified federal documents should be available to any interested individual in the U.S., for example, even without giving a justification. Federal agencies are subject to the Freedom of Information Act, which affords both access and procedures for obtaining records. There are exceptions, of course, in which meetings can be closed and documents can be sealed, but the principles of “sunshine in government” are affirmed through the enforcement of state and federal open meetings and open records laws. Despite certain differences, some basic provisions are held in common and considered in this chapter.
