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Editorial: Idaho records exemption goes too far

Sun., Feb. 21, 2016

The possible ways terrorists could strike inside our country are innumerable, so trying to shut off every avenue can lead to a closed society.

Some preventive measures make sense: scans at airports, more questions at borders, increased security at public events.

But some are self-serving moves that benefit particular interests over the general public. Last week, the Idaho House of Representatives passed an exemption to public records law that falls into this category.

The bill proposed by the Idaho Consumer-Owned Utilities Association would exempt records of “critical infrastructure” in an effort to thwart terrorism.

One of the sponsors, Rep. Don Cheatham, R-Post Falls, raised the specter of cataclysmic attacks as he implored his colleagues to pass the bill.

“It’s much easier to handle this matter now … rather than having Idaho citizens, Idaho’s Legislature, having to deal with an incident of such magnitude involving massive recovery efforts which could take months or even years to resolve.”

Try as we might, we cannot imagine terrorists filing public records requests before launching these imagined attacks.

The Idaho Public Records Act already grants an exemption for buildings controlled by public agencies, but it stipulates that it can be applied “only when the disclosure of such information would jeopardize the safety of persons or the public safety.”

That exemption was carved out after 9/11, and a grand total of zero attacks on such facilities have occurred since.

Some people would take this as evidence that the current law is just fine. However, HB 447 proponents disagree. The bill alters the language to state that an exemption can be invoked if the information “could be used to jeopardize safety.” It also adds “property” as something that could be imperiled.

Fact is, anything could be used in terrorism plots. The only limit is one’s imagination.

In addition, the bill broadens the definition of “critical infrastructure.” So broad it could apply to a municipal water system, meaning records potentially could be off-limits if an Idaho town were to have its water supply tainted like it was in Flint, Michigan.

It was investigative reporting that revealed the extent of that catastrophe.

This bill isn’t the first instance of a terrorist bogeyman being touted to shut down records that are of interest to the public. For example, rail companies not wanting to release information on oil trains have invoked the possibility of terrorism.

The Senate is expected to take up this legislation this week, and we hope those lawmakers ask a simple question: Is there a specific problem, as opposed to an imagined one, that this bill addresses?

To repeat, there have been no attacks since the initial exemption was carved out. However, this bill would do real damage to public records law.

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