A 'wake-up call' for House Bill 218 – Letter by Zack Fowler

There's a disturbing thought process going on in the Georgia legislature this year. The idea that "the ends justifies the means" was manifest in SB-5 on eminent domain. Lucky for us, it was defeated. House Bill 218 on secrecy in government also attempts to let Big Brother take care of us. However, it chances of passage appear very possible.

As a member of the board of the Georgia Association of Broadcasters and a radio journalist, I was shocked to learn that the chairman of the Senate Economic Development Committee, Sen. Jeff Mullis, R-Chickamauga, refused to allow members of the press or the media to be heard when his committee held a "hearing" on the bill.

Before voting the bill out, the committee heard mostly from government bureaucrats whose jobs would be made easier if that pesky Georgia Sunshine Law would allow them to deal in secret with big business. Is this not the type of arrogance that so enraged voters that they voted Gov. Roy Barnes out and dubbed him "King Roy?" Is "Czar Sonny" next?

We need jobs, particularly in rural areas of the state. However, Georgia overall has been leading the Southeast in growth for many years. We did it in the sunshine and it worked just fine. I'm not willing to trade places with Alabama or South Carolina or any of those other states that Sonny's boys tell us have an "unfair advantage."

A few years back, we had a hog farm that wanted to locate near the Ohoopee River in Tattnall County. It took a few weeks for the public to mobilize, but the outcry finally killed the project. If we swallow Perdue's secrecy law, we won't know what our "trusted" elected and appointed officials are doing until it's too late.

Representative government only works well if the people are informed and involved in decisions. House Bill 218 seeks to keep us in the dark and is a dangerous step down a slippery slope. The bill is currently in the Senate Rules Committee, and I urge you to call Rules Committee Chairman Sen. Don Balfour, R-Snellville, and ask him to help kill this bill. His number is 404-656-0095.

They've had lots of calls lately and have put the answering machine on, so you may not get to talk with a human being. But give it a try and at least leave a message.

Zack Fowler is a resident of Vidalia.