With a D-plus circled in red, it’s not a report card that will go up on the fridge, but it’s one that ought to be read closely by representatives of all three branches of state government: executive, legislative and judicial.
After ranking third among the 50 states in the 2012 State Integrity Report by the Center for Public Integrity — a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization — Washington fell to 12th and earned a D-plus in the center’s integrity report for 2015, which graded all 50 state governments on compliance and performance in public accountability and transparency.
Washington is in crowded company. Alaska topped the rankings — with a C grade, followed by California and Connecticut with C-minus grades. Eleven states received failing grades; the Everblushing State sat in the middle of pack with the other 36 states with D grades.
Washington state, which passed its Public Records Act in 1972 by voter initiative, earned its worst rankings in five main areas: public access to information; executive and legislative accountability; state civil service management and disclosure of lobbying activity.
Among a long list of measurements, the report faults the state for:
- Not allowing greater access to public records online and not resolving appeals for public records requests in a reasonable time and at no cost to the public;
- Not routinely auditing the financial disclosures of state officials, lawmakers and senior civil service employees;
- Not better policing state officials and lawmakers who join lobbying firms soon after leaving government office; and
- Not routinely auditing disclosure records of lobbyists.
It’s not mentioned because the ruling was made only last month, but it’s likely the report would have criticized a recent state Supreme Court ruling that a land use committee for San Juan County wasn’t bound by the state law that requires government meetings be open to the public.
Fortunately for the state, any deficiency in rules and policies have not often resulted in misfeasance or public corruption. The report notes Washington state’s general reputation for good government, pointing to a 2012 report by the University of Illinois at Chicago that found that the only state with a lower rate for federal corruption convictions was Oregon.
One of the state’s better grades in the report was for its work in internal auditing, for which it earned a B grade and ranks fourth in the nation. (Never mind that the current state auditor, Troy Kelley, is on a leave of absence and under federal indictment for tax evasion and other charges stemming from business dealings prior to his election in 2014.) When the state Auditor’s Office looks at the books of city and county governments and other agencies, it’s not unusual for auditors’ reports to find deficiencies in how records are kept and laws and policies are followed, even if lax controls have not resulted in a misuse of money or abuse of the public trust.
Essentially, that’s the takeaway here for state government: You’ve avoided major scandal, but more out of good fortune than on the strength of your laws and their enforcement regarding access to public records, accountability and transparency.
The good thing about a bad report card is that it shows you where you need to work harder.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
