Otte, Center Post Dispatch honored for commitment

LXXXII (2011)

March 2011

Published 05-26-11

Ed Otte and the Center Post Dispatch were the recipients of this year’s awards.

Friend of the First

Following is the transcript of CPA President Bob Moore’s presentation to Ed Otte.

For 15 years, Ed Otte was indispensable in efforts to ensure that government in Colorado operated in the open. During his tenure, the Colorado Press Association and its allies helped produce a number of changes to state law that made Colorado government even more transparent. When it became evident that some local governments were abusing executive sessions, Ed and the CPA took the lead on a bill that required most governments to record executive sessions, so a judge would have a reliable record to review if a citizen challenged the appropriateness of an executive session. Since the law was passed, citizens and newspapers have been able to force the release of recordings of improper executive sessions.

During his tenure as Colorado Press Association executive director, Ed oversaw a number of projects with member newspapers and the Associated Press that looked at how well open government laws were being followed in Colorado. One of the most consequential was a 2006 series that looked at how much governments were charging for open records. The series revealed that Colorado had the highest allowable charge in the country for public records, $1.25 a page. The stories caught the eye of a Colorado Springs state senator, and CPA and other groups worked to push through a bill in the 2007 Legislature that lowered the cost to 25 cents per page, which was more reflective of the actual costs of generating those records.

 Also during his tenure, Ed zealously watched for efforts that would undermine governmental obligations to public legal notices of their actions.

 Because of Ed’s efforts, the people of Colorado have more access to their government. He is a deserving recipient of the Friend of the First award.

Service to the First

Following is a transcript of Board Chair Jeanette Chavez’s presentation of the Service to the First Award.

The Center Post Dispatch launched a series to increase awareness among local residents about evolving issues affecting property rights, land use and economic development as proposed by Saguache County in its county master plan. Although the master plan was many months in the making, community members voiced concern that their input was not heard and that language barriers and a failure to communicate true citizen impact lead to a lack of participation in meetings.

During the finalization of the plan, improper executive sessions took place and information that should have been public was denied to many citizens. In one scenario, commissioners announced that they had fired two appointed members of the planning commission in executive session. Previous executive sessions were held to discuss removal of appointed members of the planning commission. Despite repeated objections by the newspaper, the commissioners admitted no wrongdoing.

As a result, the Center Post Dispatch filed a lawsuit against the Saguache Board of County Commissioners alleging violations of the Colorado Open Meetings Law and challenging all of the board’s 2010 executive sessions.

A week prior to the court date, the commissioners settled with the newspaper.

Not only did the commissioners admit wrongdoing by the board, but they committed not to violate the statute in the future and, in particular, a commitment not to use the “personnel matter” executive sessions to discuss non-employees.