October 24, 2022 at 11:10 a.m.
Sheriff honored by Wisconsin Newspaper Association for transparency
Hartman wins inaugural Sunshine in Government award for 'rare' commitment to open government
Sheriff honored by Wisconsin Newspaper Association for transparency
The award, launched this year by the WNA board of directors, recognizes efforts by Wisconsin citizens and public officials to protect and strengthen open government. It will be presented during the Wisconsin Newspaper Hall of Fame banquet on Thursday, Nov. 10, in Madison.
As the WNA stated in its announcement, law enforcement officers have the authority to enforce public records laws, but it's a rare occurrence. However, Hartman, who was first appointed sheriff in 2013 and elected thereafter and is an outspoken advocate for open government, serves as an exception.
Indeed, Hartman has consistently earned extraordinarily high marks in The Lakeland Times's annual Sunshine Grades, recording a body of lifetime work in open government that ranks him - along with former Vilas County judge Neal Nielsen - among the all-time highest in the grades.
Times publisher Gregg Walker, a member of the WNA board of directors, said the impact of Hartman's achievements extend far beyond Oneida County.
"Sheriff Hartman is not just an advocate for open government," Walker said. "He is an outspoken advocate. More than that, he backs his advocacy up with action. Mr. Hartman's efforts as sheriff to open up government and take open government laws seriously could be transformative, not merely for Oneida County but for the entire state."
In one of his more important actions, in 2019 Hartman launched an investigation into allegations that the then Rhinelander city administrator had tampered with public records, culminating in the execution of search warrants at Rhinelander City Hall.
"They did not execute those warrants to find evidence of mid-management embezzlement," The Times wrote in a November 2019 editorial. "They did not enter the building to find a politician engaged in contract fraud or in dealing or buying drugs or who was committing election crimes. Rather, they entered the building to protect the people's right to access the information the people own, and to be confident that information had not been altered."
As The Times has reported, it was the first time in Wisconsin that a law-enforcement agency had raided a government building based upon an open records complaint.
"At long last someone in the justice system had taken a stand for open government," the newspaper opined. "When probable cause that a crime had been committed presented itself, he acted to find out if that was the case, to enforce the open government laws that might have been broken."
Then, too, in 2020, the sheriff continued to make his mark for open government when he agreed with the newspaper that the county code provision requiring county staff to route any questionable emails, or ones with redactions, through the corporation counsel's office for review was illegal. That provision was jettisoned, and, in meetings to reform the county's open records laws, Hartman remained a vocal advocate for openness who did not hesitate to disagree with counsel's take on code provisions.
In a memo to the county board chairman, Hartman said the requirement for the corporation counsel to review requested records conflicted with state statutes and transferred custodial power over records to county attorneys.
"I do not believe this paragraph is legal, nor does it fall in line with Wisconsin state statutes," Hartman wrote. "The current wording has the effect of making the corporation counsel the records custodian for all the records. In turn, it slows down the release of the records."
Hartman has also called for requiring new records custodians to attend open records training within their orientation period, and for code language requiring all records custodians to stay current with new open records case law. And Hartman has advocated that county ordinances should expressly forbid differential treatment of records requests, or any discrimination against records' requesters.
According to the newspaper's Sunshine Grades, Hartman's own office became the gold standard for responding to records requests in Oneida County.
"The sheriff responds to requests immediately, and, in instances where record fulfillment many take a little longer because of the complexity of the request or because of potential redactions, his office routinely updates requesters on the status of the request," the newspaper reported. "There is never an attempt to obstruct or delay."
That was in sharp contrast to most of the rest of the county. Then corporation counsel Brian Desmond routinely scored failing grades in the annual rankings, advocating for an ever more secretive government. Former county board chairman Dave Hintz also obstructed openness, often responding to open records requests by releasing completely redacted documents.
In sum, Walker said it was rare to have a sheriff not only committed to the open government laws we have but who advocates for even stronger ones.
"It is rarer still to see a more responsive and transparent public official," he said. "Sheriff Hartman's advocacy and his actions have immeasurably strengthened transparency, and it is fitting that he be recognized for his work."
The WNA's new Sunshine in Government Award aims to recognize efforts by Wisconsin citizens and public officials to protect and strengthen open government. It seeks to highlight the importance of an engaged citizenry in a democracy by recognizing individuals whose actions have helped foster government transparency and protect the public's right to know.
Any Wisconsin individual, including citizens, public officials, educators and others who have made extraordinary efforts on behalf of government transparency, are eligible. That includes those who have gone the extra mile to facilitate access to information, to advocate on behalf of public records or open meetings, or to exemplify extraordinary leadership on behalf of freedom of information and challenging efforts to impede the public's right to know.
Richard Moore is the author of "Dark State" and can be reached at richardd3d.substack.com.
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