By: Treasure Coast Newspapers Editorial Board
Treasure Coast residents should remember how their state representatives voted Tuesday: Erin Grall, R-Vero Beach, and Larry Lee, D-Port St. Lucie, voted against a bill that would have gutted Floridians' right to open government. Gayle Harrell, R-Stuart, and MaryLynn Magar, R-Tequesta, supported a ridiculous measure from Byron Donalds, R-Naples, that would have allowed two members of public boards and commissions to meet secretly and discuss government business.
Florida's Sunshine Law, which prohibits such closed-door meetings, has been critical to root out the kind of backroom deal-making and insider deals that plague governments in many other states. The Sunshine Law is imperfect, but it’s essential to regulating lawmakers’ bad behavior.