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By Jana Mathia
Gazette Reporter 

Observers serve as eyes, ears at gov't meetings

 

April 11, 2019



While most public government meetings don’t usually draw a big crowd of spectators, there is a group of people who shoulder the responsibility of keeping government open, sitting through meetings as possibly the only representative of the citizenry and reporting back on the happenings of the elected officials in Whitman County and Pullman.

These people are the Observers Corps of the League of Women Voters.

“The League is all about open government,” said Judy Stone, the League of Women Voters of Pullman Observer Corps manager. “An Observer is the eyes and ears of the league.”

Observers are volunteers who attend, on average, one meeting a month, then write a report on that meeting of anything that could be of interest to the League or the public.

“It’s not a minute-taking report,” Stone said. The reports are about a page or less in length. The Observer turns in the report to Stone who then gives it to the President of the League. Should anything from the meeting prompt League response or input, that decision and action is taken solely by the president. Usually, this action is a letter to the local paper or the agency reported on. One recent episode is the issue of having a District Court in Pullman.

“We elected them and now we want to know what they’re doing,” Stone said. While every meeting attended by an observer is reported on, not all invoke reaction by the League.

The Observer’s role is a quiet one. The main rule is Observers do not do anything but observe, meaning they do not comment or question decisions made. They can ask for further information on something, but otherwise quietly sit back, watch, listen and report. Being objective in their observation is another key criteria.

There are currently 13 Observers from the Pullman League covering 10 boards in Whitman County. They include the Whitman County Commissioners, Port of Whitman County, Whitman County Planning Commission, SWAC, Pullman City Council, Pullman Hospital Board, Pullman Library Board, Pullman School District, Pullman Planning Commission and the Pullman Arts Commission. Most boards meet once a month and are observed by the same person each time. For those that meet more regularly, more than one observer may cover that board so each only has to sacrifice their time once a month.

To facilitate open, transparent government, the League also posts all the Observers’ reports on its website, lwvpullman.org.

“The League believes that the presence of Observers helps keep government entities attentive to their jobs, with the proper respect for doing the public’s business and promotes transparency and accountability,” Stone stated.

Within the meeting they cover, the Observers are well received and known by the officials they are watching.

“I’ve not had an Observer not be welcome,” Stone said. Nor has an Observer had a negative experience at a board meeting.

Some Observers have a specific interest in the board they follow, while others just want to observe. While the League is covering all the boards it wants to and there is not currently a strong need for more Observers, more would be helpful to report on other boards.

“They put in a lot of time and effort, Observers do,” Stone noted.

Anyone can be a member of the League of Women Voters, but one need not be a member to attend the meetings, forums or events put on by the League. One must be a member of the League to be in the Observers Corps.

Author Bio

Jana Mathia, Reporter

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Jana Mathia is a reporter at the Whitman County Gazette.

 

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