N.Y. Public Officers Law § 84: Legislative declaration

§ 84. Legislative declaration. The legislature hereby finds that a

free society is maintained when government is responsive and responsible

to the public, and when the public is aware of governmental actions. The

more open a government is with its citizenry, the greater the

understanding and participation of the public in government.

As state and local government services increase and public problems

become more sophisticated and complex and therefore harder to solve, and

with the resultant increase in revenues and expenditures, it is

incumbent upon the state and its localities to extend public

accountability wherever and whenever feasible.

The people's right to know the process of governmental decision-making

and to review the documents and statistics leading to determinations is

basic to our society. Access to such information should not be thwarted

by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.

The legislature therefore declares that government is the public's

business and that the public, individually and collectively and

represented by a free press, should have access to the records of

government in accordance with the provisions of this article.