Local government does its business — spends your tax dollars and sets the policies that affect your day-to-day life — at public meetings, usually held monthly or twice monthly.

By law, you have the right to attend those meetings and to address the local government board about the matters before them.

But you can only know what matters lay before the board if that board releases an agenda for its meetings. You can only access that agenda if the board makes it readily available. And you can only really know what a board has before it if that board provides more detailed information about the items on its agenda.

The News found that most of the biggest governments in Northeast Michigan do not provide that kind of information.

In honor of Sunshine Week, a national, nonpartisan celebration of government transparency laws and an occasion to advocate for more openness, The News reviewed the practices of the region’s nine biggest governments: Alpena, Presque Isle, Montmorency, and Alcona counties and Alpena, Alpena Township, Rogers City, Hillman, and Harrisville.

The News’ review found all but one of those local governments, Harrisville, post their agendas online, though often as little as 24 hours before a meeting, giving the public little time to review the agendas and research the issues on which they want to address the board. Harrisville makes its agendas available at its city Clerk’s Office, but the office is only open from 9:30 a.m. to noon, News staff writer Steve Schulwitz reported in a recent story.

Only three of the reviewed local governments — Alpena County, Alpena, and Alpena Township — post at least a partial board packet with their agendas, providing the public copies of staff reports and recommendations to the board, financial information, and other material that helps the public understand the decisions the board faces and better prepare to make public comment.

It’s worth noting that Michigan’s weak transparency laws only require boards to post notices of their meetings 18 hours before the meeting, and do not require the posting of agendas at all. So all of the Northeast Michigan governments reviewed by The News appear to be in compliance with Michigan’s Open Meetings Act.

The News has also found most local governments to be forthcoming with information when asked.

However, especially in 2024, when publishing anything to the Web has become as easy as pushing a button, there’s no reason every local government couldn’t post more information online more quickly. Doing so shows the governments’ openness and arms the public with the information they need to make informed comments at the government’s meeting in a way that might influence the board’s decisions.

The government ought to be responsive to its constituents, but governments who fail to share adequate information with the public in a timely manner rob their constituents of the chance to share their thoughts, which robs the government of the chance to be responsive.

We call on all local governments to celebrate Sunshine Week 2024 by immediately making more information available more quickly and more easily by posting not only complete agendas but supporting documents online in a timely manner.