Why not a little more sunshine?

State senators made the right move earlier this month when they voted to require the Iowa Association of School Boards to comply with state sunshine laws.

Thursday, the Senate struck that amendment from the education appropriations bill and recommended that an interim study committee review the issue at stake. That's OK if the Legislative Council assigns such a committee. It also should look at expanding the sunshine requirement to similar associations.

Other non-profit associations like IASB that serve elected bodies - such as the League of Cities and Iowa State Association of Counties - also aren't bound by state open records or open meetings laws.

In light of the IASB's management being investigated for fiscal misdeeds, it seems clear that when taxpayer dollars are being passed through to associations that advise and advocate for such voter-elected bodies, the public has a right to know how business is done.

A legislative committee's probe of IASB also highlights yet another reason to establish a state public information board to enforce the state's open meetings and open records laws and respond quickly to complaints. That proposal is at risk of being sidetracked for the third consecutive year in the Legislature.

State sunshine laws give Iowans the right to attend open meetings and review records and documents.

The laws are designed to hold government accountable. Extending those rules to associations serving those elected bodies only makes sense.

Iowa State Association of Counties Executive Director Bill Peterson told us he thinks the transparency already required of non-profit organizations like his already provides enough accountability. They're subject to audits by private auditors or the state. Their tax reports of operational expenses, names of board members and whether they're compensated all are open to the public, as is salary information about employees above certain income threshold.

Subjecting his organization to sunshine laws might not significantly change the way they do business, but Peterson said he thinks a blanket change misses the point. At the end of the day, he said, it all comes down to whether boards are well-trained, informed and engaged, and whether the organization is managed by ethical, competent professionals.

“More and more rules doesn't solve the problem if you have people who aren't paying attention and aren't getting things right,” he said.

We understand the aversion to adding more layers of regulations. However, the IASB's own board of directors was apparently unable to access the organization's financial records and audits. Which shows us that more transparency is in order.

As a reasonable safeguard for Iowans, why not require a little more sunshine on all similar organizations?