Vermont to strengthen public records law.

• Position: GOVERNMENT RECORDS

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin (D) and key lawmakers have announced a comprehensive plan involving the executive branch and the Vermont Legislature to ensure government records remain open and accessible to the public.

The legislation would designate a state office to enforce the public records law and make it easier for those individuals who are wrongly denied access to public records to recover attorney fees if they have to go to court, theGovMonitor.com reported.

Shumlin campaigned on transparency and since becoming governor has worked with Senate and House members to improve the law and public agency compliance.

"The single biggest complaint we've heard is not that the law as written doesn't go far enough," the governor said at a Statehouse press conference. "It's that in some cases state employees have not complied with the spirit or letter of the law as written, often due to inadequate training."

The plan aims to address such complaints. It requires state government to recognize the need to provide public information and training on how to comply with the open records law.

For example, within the next few months, the governor's office will train all public records officers across the state. Within five...