Florida celebrates 100 years of Sunshine Law

Florida's Sunshine Law began with a bill introduced in 1909 that spanned only 36 words. Of course, the law has evolved since then in good and bad ways, Pat Rice of the Northwest Florida Daily News reported. Just recently, a bill was introduced that would exempt personal identifying information (names, addresses, etc.) for current or former public school teachers, administrators and school board members.

Sunday is Sunshine Sunday, a day each year when newspapers across Florida champion the state's open-records and open-meetings laws.

This year is of special note because it's the 100th anniversary of the genesis of Florida's Sunshine Law, which protects your right to know how your government operates.

In 1909, a state representative from Gadsden County, J.W. Mahaffey, introduced a bill requiring that "all state, county, and municipal records shall at all times be open for a personal inspection of any citizen of Florida and those in charge of such records shall not refuse this privilege to any citizen."

More here.