MARCH 2020 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 7
SUNSHINE WEEK
NEW OPENNESS PROPOSALS
The proposals to increase government transparency come ahead of the national open records awareness initiative Sunshine Week, which runs from
March 15 to 21.
BY TIMOTHY BOLGER
Town of Huntington officials were
recently accused of failing to properly
notify the town board of an allegation of
sexual harassment, prompting New York
State lawmakers to propose strengthening
reporting requirements.
Municipalities in New York State would
be required under the bill to report to
governing bodies any sexual harassment
complaints or alleged violations
of the Human Rights Law that result in
disciplinary action — one of several proposals
the state legislature is considering
to increase government transparency.
“I am outraged that after last year’s
historic advancements to address the
pervasive culture of sexual harassment
in our society, the Town of Huntington
failed to handle this situation with the
immediacy and seriousness it demands,”
state Sen. Jim Gaughran (D-Syosset) said.
“This bill will ensure that moving forward
the entire town board is notifi ed,
not cherry picked council members, to
ensure these situations have the integrity
they require.”
The failure to disclose is not surprising.
In 2017, the Press and Press Club of Long
Island jointly published an unprecedented
report card grading nearly 200
localities' responsiveness to public records.
Although Huntington had scored
high marks under the leadership of
former Supervisor Frank Petrone, the
region earned a "C," showing room for
improvement.
In the case that sparked the disclosure
proposal, Current Huntington Town
Supervisor Chad Lupinacci blamed the
lawyers.
“The employee was dealt with harshly,
immediately, and in a manner consistent
with the advice of our director of
personnel and outside labor counsel,
who also advised that the Town Board’s
involvement in disciplinary action was
not warranted,” he said in a statement.
Sparking the uproar were revelations
that Huntington public safety director
Peter Sammis — who has since resigned
— was suspended for sending explicit
emails to underlings about a female
employee last year. Councilwoman Joan
Cergol said she and other town board
members were kept in the dark about
the suspension.
The proposal is just one of several
pending in the state Legislature related
to transparency. Several pertain to the
Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).
One would prohibit agencies from
charging for the process of a FOIL request
made by state and local agencies
or the state Legislature. Another would
alert farm operators when someone
fi les a FOIL request about their farm.
And most signifi cantly, a third would
repeal the provision of FOIL that
exempts the state Legislature from
being required to comply with such
requests.
Like the Huntington case, another
proposal aims to ensure allegations of
public interest are properly disclosed.
The proposed Sunshine in Litigation
Act would prohibit settlement agreements
that conceal a public hazard or
any information that would identify a
public hazard. South Carolina, Texas,
Florida, Louisiana, and Washington
have enacted similar laws aft er numerous
crashes resulting from defective
Firestone tires that were later recalled
following secretive settlements.
As for the sexual harassment notifi -
cation bill, Gaughran noted that the
timing was especially bad.
“It is horrifying that in the midst of
Harvey Weinstein's trial, public offi -
cials in our own backyard blatantly
disregarded protocol and failed to act
immediately and appropriately,” he
said. “Sexual harassment has absolutely
no place in New York, especially not in
government.”
IN THE NEWS
“Public offi cials in our own backyard blatantly
disregarded protocol and failed to act immediately
and appropriately,” said Jim Gaughran.
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM