transparency was supposed to be made easier
through the Utah law known as "GRAMA" -- or Government
Records Access and Management
Act, It was designed to keep
the government accountable to
us, the taxpaying public.
It was once considered
among the best laws in the
nation.. for transparency.
But as Daniella Rivera
discovered.. a lot has changed
in the last three decades..
A simple text from
phone to phone could create a
government record.
But the KSL
Investigators found, the
policy and procedures for
records in the utah
legislature, mean you might
never see it.
1:02 - 1:081:40-1:461:58 - 2:02
3:11 - 3:18 1992:
"Aladdin" hit the big screen.
Bill Clinton won the
presidency dial up
soundCommercial dial-up
internet made its debut...
WILL GRAMA BE A SHINING LIGHT
FOR THE PRESS OR AN INVITATION
FOR PRIVACY INVASIONS In July
of ’92 Utah’s GRAMA law broke
new ground.But just a few
months later, the first text
message was sent.Changing
communication forever. Jeff
Hunt: IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT
THE PHYSICAL FORM OF THE
RECORD IS, WHETHER IT’S AN
EMAIL, A TEXT MESSAGE,
SOMETHING ON TWITTER, OR
FACEBOOK... Utah attorney
Jeff Hunt helped draft GRAMA.
He says any time a lawmaker is
doing the public’s work --
GRAMA applies. ALL THOSE
ARE RECORDS UNDER GRAMA.
But how easy is it for Utahns
to actually get those records?
Jonathan Bejarano: WE SHOULD
HAVE INSIGHT INTO WHAT THEY’RE
DOING When it comes to GRAMA
requests -- Jonathan Bejarano
considers himself a frequent
filer. Jonathan Bejarano:
TOO MANY TO COUNT most
recently -- he wanted to see a
particular text message...
Sen. Pres. Adams: I JUST GOT A
TEXT LAST NIGHT, AND I HATE TO
USE NAMES BUT I WILL, DONOVAN
MITCHELL IS NOT HAPPY WITH
US... Senate president
Stuart Adams said he received
a text about the Utah Jazz
player... and the
legislature’s stance on
critical race theory.
Jonathan Bejarano: I WANTED TO
KNOW, CONTEXT. gfxSo Bejarano
filed a GRAMA request
Jonathan Bejarano: THE FIRST
ONE CAME BACK WITH NOTHING.
AND THEN I WAS LIKE, OKAY, LET
ME TRY SOMETHING. GFX He then
sent his own text to Adams...
and filed another records
request seeking any text
messages on Adam’s phone which
included key words like "CRT"
and "mitchell"... But he
received the same response:
á cover this bite á ? Jonathan
Bejarano: NO RECORDS
RESPONSIVE TO YOUR REQUEST.
Daniella Rivera: WHAT DID YOU
MAKE OF THAT? Jonathan
Bejarano: IT MAKES ME A LITTLE
UPSET BECAUSE THESE PEOPLE ARE
ELECTED TO REPRESENT US
Bejarano is not a reporter.
He’s one citizen who believes
lawmakers have found ways to
skirt transparency.And some of
them told us, he’s not wrong.
Rep. Andrew Stoddard THERE’S ENOUGH WAYS AROUND GRAMA AND PEOPLE DON’T LIKE TO THERE
ARE. Democrat Representative
Andrew Stoddard sponsored a
bill during the last
legislative session, hoping to
clarify GRAMA. Rep. Andrew
Stoddard PEOPLE WERE USING
PERSONAL DEVICES FOR
GOVERNMENT BUSINESS, AND NOT
PROVIDING ACCESS TO THOSE
RECORDS It’s no secret that
some lawmakers prefer to use
private email accounts to do
the public’s business... GFX
three senators openly list
private emails in their
contact information on the
legislature’s website.
Jonathan Bejarano THAT TO ME
IS A BIG RED FLAG gfxThe KSL
Investigators sent a survey to
all 104 Utah legislators,
asking if they use private
accounts to do state business.
Only 13 responded. Two
republicans, and 11 democrats.
Republican Curt Bramble told
us he does it to make sure no
one can accuse him of using
his government email for
campaigning. Others said when
government and private emails
mix... it’s usually out of
convenience.Senator Kathleen
Riebe explained --
"Constituents frequently
contact me through other
emails." Representative Jen
Daily-Provost said she
responds to people using the
account they contact her
through... but "I do not
initiate conversations related
to the legislature from my
personal account." Sen.
Todd Weiler: HAVE I USED
PRIVATE ACCOUNTS? YES, BUT IT
HASN’T BEEN A, ’HA HA, THEY’LL
NEVER CATCH ME.’ IT’S JUST
MORE OF, IF SOMEONE’S EMAILED
ME AT THAT ACCOUNT, AND I’VE
RESPONDED TO THEM.
Republican Senator Todd Weiler
says legislators know that if
their communication records
are requested under GRAMA --
the law requires they turn
them over. Sen. Todd Weiler:
QUITE FRANKLY, WITH MY EMAILS,
I DON’T FEEL LIKE I HAVE
ANYTHING TO HIDE But what if a
lawmaker did have government
records they’d like to keep
hidden... in a private account?
Rep. Andrew Stoddard: THAT
WOULD BE ON THE HONOR SYSTEM.
Daniella Rivera: THE KSL
INVESTIGATORS HAVE FOUND EVEN
WHEN EMAILS GO THROUGH A
LAWMAKERS’ GOVERNMENT
ACCOUNT... TRANSPARENCY IS NOT
GUARANTEED. IN NOVEMBER, WE
OBTAINED THIS EMAIL... AND
THIS ONE... AND THIS ONE --
FROM OUTSIDE SOURCES. THEY
DISCUSS A NEW SELF DEFENSE
LAW, AND WENT THROUGH A
LAWMAKER’S GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT.
BUT WHEN WE FILED A GRAMA
REQUEST FOR EMAILS RELATED TO
THAT BILL, THESE WEREN’T
INCLUDED. WHEN WE ASKED WHY -
THE LEGISLATURE TOLD US THERE
IS NO RULE TO PREVENT
LAWMAKERS FROM DELETING EMAILS
IF THERE IS NO "ADMINISTRATIVE
NEED" FOR THEM. Rep. Andrew
Stoddard IF I’VE GOT AN EMAIL
THAT I DON’T WANT ANYONE TO
SEE, I CAN GO AND DELETE IT.
AND THEN OBVIOUSLY, IT’S NOT
SUBJECT TO GRAMA, BECAUSE IT’S
NOT THERE. Sen. Todd
Weiler: ONCE THEY’RE DELETED,
THEY’RE GONE... I TYPICALLY
HAVE NOT PLAYED THAT GAME. BUT
I KNOW SOME LEGISLATORS HAVE.
And here’s the biggest catch
of all. Unlike other public
agencies and government
offices across Utah -- the
Legislature is not subject to
review by the state records
committee... an independent
body with the power to order
the release of records.
Jonathan Bejarano: THEY
CREATED THE RULES AND THEY
EXEMPTED THEMSELVES FROM THEM.
I THINK THAT’S A GIANT RED
FLAG. Today -- the
legislature has the ultimate
say in what records are
released. Jonathan
Bejarano: THE LEGISLATURE IS
NOT TRANSPARENT, BECAUSE THEY
ARE ESSENTIALLY THEIR OWN
REFEREE, THEY CALL THE BALLS,
THEY CALL THE STRIKES.
A Senate spokesperson told us
the Legislature followed GRAMA
law, and its records policy
when responding to Bejarano’s
request for text messages.
Bejarano told us -- he
believes that policy should be
re-evaluated. Mike and Deanie.
ADLIB TOSS TO WX