Shine light on inspections

Before making reservations or picking up a fork at a local greasy spoon, patrons can do a quick online search to find how the restaurant fared in its most recent inspection.

All they have to do is point their browser to the state's Department of Inspection and Appeals Food and Consumer Safety Bureau, where they can search by location, license type or establishment name and review every inspection report filed since 2005.

Was the food properly handled and stored? Were surfaces and equipment clean? Was the water supply safe? These and other important questions are easily answered.

The site provides plenty of information to help diners make informed decisions - describing the inspection process, explaining Iowa food code and regulations, explaining how to read an inspection report and how to file a complaint.

Making the information clear and easy to access holds restaurants accountable and gives consumers the power to make informed choices. It's government transparency in action.

So why isn't the same information at Iowans' fingertips when it comes to public pools and other businesses where health and safety can be at risk?

Last month, a Gazette investigation revealed that about one in five licensed swim facilities in Linn and Johnson counties had been forced to close at least once in the past two years because of health and safety violations.

Some pools were repeat violators - facilities that were closed more than once for placing visitors' health at risk.

Take the Clarion Hotel & Convention Center, 525 33rd Ave. SW, which since July 1, 2010 has had six forced closures of its pool or hot tub after testing positive for pathogens like E. coli and fecal coliform.

Or the Quality Inn, 4747 First Ave. SE, which has been forced to close its pool or hot tub seven times in the same time - four times because it didn't have the proper amount of bacteria-killing chlorine.

Shouldn't the public be able to make informed decisions in those establishments, too?

Even though hotels only accounted for one-third of the licensed pools and hot tubs in Linn County, they had 80 percent of the forced closures there. In Johnson County, hotels accounted for about 40 percent of the pools but two-thirds of the closures.

Surely families have a right to know a facility's track record for safety before allowing their children to dive in.

Critics say publicizing inspection reports will cause the public to panic - to blow small infractions out of proportion. But the state's restaurant database proves this isn't true.

It's time to expand that successful idea to other types of licensed businesses where Iowans' health and safety could be at risk.

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