The fight for more transparency is more important now than ever before, and one of our most important jobs as a newspaper is to consistently push to ensure the light of clarity shines into every corner of government.

To some extent we have it pretty lucky in Oregon. The state’s open records law allows residents — and newspapers — to seek records that may otherwise be kept secret from the public. The law is a crucial pillar in our democracy, though it is consistently tinkered with by lawmakers.

Just as consistently, newspapers and other legitimate news outlets must remind readers and lawmakers that in a democracy the workings of government and elected leaders are open to public review. That’s how democracy works, and remains one of its fundamental themes. The people — not bureaucrats or elected officials — oversee government. Bureaucrats and lawmakers serve at the discretion and pleasure of the people. Not the other way around.

Since the deadly Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, America has gradually — and in some cases, readily — moved away from open government. The terrorists that slammed jets into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon killed thousands of innocent people, but they also helped trigger a new era of secrecy, where documents and records that should rightfully be accessible to the public are hidden.

Some secrets — even in a democracy — are justifiable. A top-secret military experiment should be shrouded from the public view. Anything that can harm our nation’s security and give our enemies an upper hand should be hidden.

Yet, that is most likely the only justifiable secret in a democracy.

As we stated, Oregonians are fortunate in that our public records law allows for a reasoned and precise method to attain records regarding specific subjects that are important to the public. As a rule — there are, of course, always exceptions — bureaucratic institutions, such as governments, err on the side of secrecy always. That means somewhere a person not elected can decide arbitrarily to keep a document hidden.

That is where our public records law comes into play. Make no mistake, the public records process isn’t an easy one and, if a specific state agency wants to fight such a request, it can lead to court battles and large expenses.

Why should a public agency fight to keep records away from the public in court? They shouldn’t, but they often do.

Nothing is more important in a democracy than transparency. When a government agency or lawmaker fights a public record request, the first question should be: What are they trying to hide?