Neighborly Resourcing
Pick a meeting, any meeting!
Amid complaints of lacking transparency, units of government have “flooded the zone” with as much public information as possible in an effort to avoid conflict with the public.
The people that staff these departments aren’t the elected types at all. Most are accountants, statistics and economics experts, civil engineers and urban planners, parks and recreation professionals, etc. They aren’t accustomed to being challenged by the public - and they shouldn’t be - that’s not their job. That’s your elected official’s job!
As a voter looking for information, this 100% access comes with challenges because there’s SO MUCH information out there, sometimes it can seem impossible to find what you’re really looking for. With VoteSharp in 17 states, we can say - without a doubt - Kansas is one of the most transparent and logically organized states to find data.
It also comes with benefits, one of those being nearly 100% access to the meetings of everyone who represents you at a dozen various levels. In most cases, legislative, city council, school board, even sewer and water board meetings have always been open to the public.
But now, you can chill in the recliner in your PJs, watch Netflix on the TV, and your school board meeting on the iPad in your lap, whether it’s live-streaming or recorded!
Pick a meeting on a topic you’re interested in at the local, county, state, or national level - you can literally Google it - and you’ll find the topic being discussed. Learning IS engaging and you’ll become a great resource for your community on the issue!
Happy serving,
Stephanie Sharp
About Serve60Sharp
Serve60Sharp is a weekly, read-in-60-seconds newsletter, which provides readers with actionable ideas to serve their communities.