Columns, Opinion

Editor’s Column: A new blow to public information

Niki Turner

Hot on the heels of last week’s kudos to the Town of Meeker for stepping up and restoring publication of an (albeit abbreviated version) of its monthly financial expenditures, this week government transparency has taken another jab in the political ring, followed by a friendly-fire uppercut from our own commissioners.

A state senator from Greeley introduced Senate Bill 18-156 earlier this year. If passed (it’s already made it through committee), the bill would remove the legal requirement on Colorado counties to publish their accounts payable in local newspapers as public notices. Instead, counties would only be required to post their expenditures online, on their own websites, once a year. Reportedly, Jefferson and Montezuma counties have said their local papers are “extorting” money from them by making them pay for publication of this essential public information, and so our commissioners opted Tuesday to put their support behind SB 18-156. If it passes, RBC would save an average of $2,000 a year, or about $170 a month.

For the record, the fees charged by newspapers for legal notices were set by state statute in 1993. I can’t say what other papers are doing, but we’re still abiding by that 1993 statute, despite a 30 percent increase in inflation. Also for the record, the Herald Times does not charge any of our governmental entities or special taxing districts for the publication of their meeting agendas. We could, according to statute, but we don’t. The county commissioners’ agendas alone would net at least $400 a month. I say that to let our readers, and fellow taxpayers, know that this isn’t about scrabbling pennies for profit. This is about letting voters know what their county is doing with their tax dollars every month, in a way that is easily accessible to everyone, and is permanent. As I have relayed in this column, once it’s in print, it’s permanent, it can’t be changed, (sometimes to our chagrin).

The internet, as amazing as it is, is not and cannot be as secure—or as trustworthy—as old-fashioned paper and ink. From Russian hackers to government employees who inadvertently allow access to secure files (remember those letters we got last year telling us sensitive Colorado juror information from almost every county in the state, including RBC, may have been leaked from a government website by mistake?) Or, just to toss this out there… “What about her e-mails?” The internet is not nearly as free from tampering as we like to pretend.

Here’s the real question: what kind of government entity would not want to publish records of its expenditures for review by its taxpaying citizens in every reasonable venue? Hopefully not our county.

• • •

On another subject, this week the RBC Republican Party chair, Logan Hill, brings up the subject of consent agendas.

I’ll confess I didn’t know what a consent agenda was a year and a half ago. Back when I first started covering commissioner meetings in the early 2000s, there was no such thing in place. Commissioner meetings were long and full of lengthy public discussion. Tiresome? Sometimes. But open. We knew where our elected officials stood individually on issues, and they didn’t always agree.

Today, with the inception of the consent agenda, which is admittedly a valid application of Robert’s Rules of Order, commissioner meetings sometimes last less than 30 minutes. There’s little discussion about much of anything, unless someone in the peanut gallery makes a ruckus about an item.

I came across the following quote from a 1983 Colorado court case about open meetings (Cole v. State) that bears consideration: “One has not participated in a public meeting if one witnesses only the final recorded vote.”

• • •

In the wake of yet another school shooting (how many times am I going to have to type that?), we’re again faced with simplistic reasoning that insists there’s one ideal solution. We all like to believe there’s a big, red “EASY” button we can push that will solve the intricacies of life.

I wish the solution was as easy as “put God back in school” or “hire veterans as armed guards” or “outlaw AR-15s.” However, none of those are a perfect cure… There will always be godless souls in our midst, according to the Bible; no one has stepped up to pay for hiring armed guards and our schools can’t do it; and outlawing a particular gun (or even hinting at outlawing a gun) is just a way to spur people to run out and buy one, further increasing the probability of a dangerous weapon ending up in unstable, untrained hands.

Which brings me to another question. When I was in school we had mandatory hunter education during junior high. We learned about firearms, by which I mean a real person scared the bejeezus out of us regarding the consequences of careless gun use and then took us to the gun range.

I’m not sure when mandatory hunter education disappeared from Colorado’s curricula,  but I think we lost an important component in preventing gun-related violence. It would be interesting to know how many school shooters in the last two decades received real, in-person hunter education training. Maybe that’s where the NRA could step up and make a real difference. By sponsoring free educational programs in schools again, not just online courses, as opposed to buying TV spots during campaign years to keep pet politicians in office. Just a thought.

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  • The 2024 Meeker High School boys basketball team held their awards banquet last week. Jace Mobley was named Player of the Western Slope League and all-conference, Ryan Sullivan all-conference, Jonathon Fitzgibbons all-conference, Ethan Quinn honorable mention all-conference, Jacob Simonsen honorable mention all conference. Mobley will play in All State games. Coach Klark Kindler was named Western Slope Coach of the Year. Left to right: Bryan Rosas, Simonsen, Quinn, Fitzgibbons, Mobley and Sullivan.
  • It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 
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  • It’s getting late, do you know where your kids are? Read all the Rio Happenings for this week in print or online at ht1885.com.
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Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch.  See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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The 2024 Meeker High School boys basketball team held their awards banquet last week. Jace Mobley was named Player of the Western Slope League and all-conference, Ryan Sullivan all-conference, Jonathon Fitzgibbons all-conference, Ethan Quinn honorable mention all-conference, Jacob Simonsen honorable mention all conference. Mobley will play in All State games. Coach Klark Kindler was named Western Slope Coach of the Year. Left to right: Bryan Rosas, Simonsen, Quinn, Fitzgibbons, Mobley and Sullivan.
The 2024 Meeker High School boys basketball team held their awards banquet last week. Jace Mobley was named Player of the Western Slope League and all-conference, Ryan Sullivan all-conference, Jonathon Fitzgibbons all-conference, Ethan Quinn honorable mention all-conference, Jacob Simonsen honorable mention all conference. Mobley will play in All State games. Coach Klark Kindler was named Western Slope Coach of the Year. Left to right: Bryan Rosas, Simonsen, Quinn, Fitzgibbons, Mobley and Sullivan.
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It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 
🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week.
Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! 
We appreciate all your continued support!
It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week. Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! We appreciate all your continued support!
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It’s getting late, do you know where your kids are? Read all the Rio Happenings for this week in print or online at ht1885.com.
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Mormon crickets have hatched near Rangely. They were all sighted on BLM land north of Hwy. 64 near the junction of CR 96 and CR 1, down a dirt road near the Moffat County line.  The picture shown was taken yesterday by Mary Meinen from Rangely. She says the crickets are about the size of a ladybug (less than 1/2”). Some of them are actually yellow in color but most of them are darker. They are milling around and getting ready to start moving soon. Note: Photo is not to scale.
Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch.  See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
Mormon crickets have hatched near Rangely. They were all sighted on BLM land north of Hwy. 64 near the junction of CR 96 and CR 1, down a dirt road near the Moffat County line. The picture shown was taken yesterday by Mary Meinen from Rangely. She says the crickets are about the size of a ladybug (less than 1/2”). Some of them are actually yellow in color but most of them are darker. They are milling around and getting ready to start moving soon. Note: Photo is not to scale. Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch. See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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Meeker FFA Chapter members competed at the District Leadership Development Event in Craig, Colorado, this month. Top row from left to right: Eva Scritchfield, Charlie Rogers, Alan Rivera, Trent Sanders, Koy Weber, Orion Musser, Said Rodriguez, Carlos Carrillo, Aidan Tapia, Hayden Garcia, Tristan Rollins, Mathew Willey, Quentin Simpson. Middle row: Sidney Keetch, Aurora Stallings, Sydnie Ross, Ava Nay, Lili Piper, Leah Wood. Bottom Row: Jaicee Simmons, Kailynn Watson, Cody Richardson, Kayla Castillo, Braydin Raley, Autumn Stallings, Aimee Shults, Emily Hamm. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
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Choose-your-own-adventure…. Hear from our Editor in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
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A crew from the Flat Tops Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation joined forces last summer to remove obsolete fences to improve habitat for wildlife. Read the full story and the foundation’s update from their 30th Anniversary meeting in this week’s edition and online at ht1885.com.
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Black Sulphur Tavern held a grand opening and ribbon cutting for their new business at 364 Seventh St. The space has been renovated with several TVs and games and provides a fun, friendly atmosphere to watch your favorite sports team and enjoy a burger and wings. Owners Frank Maestas and Pat Maestas are pictured with their new staff and Chamber of Commerce representatives Stephanie Hanson, Trudy Burri and Margie Joy. Follow Black Sulphur Tavern on Facebook. Their hours are Wednesday and Thursday 3-9 p.m., Friday 3 p.m. - 1 a.m., Saturday 11-1 a.m., Sunday 11 a.m. to midnight.
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