Angell fought for gov't transparency

by John Malmberg

With the death of Jim Angell a few weeks ago, a powerful voice for openness and transparency in government fell silent.

Angell, who served for many years as the executive director of the Wyoming Press Association, kept a vigilant eye on any bills to come before the Wyoming Legislature that might have restricted the public’s access to information.

He made trips across the state for years conducting many workshops educating elected officials at all levels of government, reporters and anyone who would listen about Wyoming’s open meetings and public record laws.

He was willing to battle anyone breaking the laws on open meetings and public records.

Angell was awarded the WPA’s Milton Chilcott Award in 2019 for his “extraordinary efforts to defend access to public information.”

It is impossible to measure how much impact Angell had on transparency in government.

When Mark Gordon ran for governor, he said he was committed to making government more transparent and accessible. He has lived up to that claim.

Within days of getting elected as Wyoming State Auditor, Kristi Racines made Wyoming’s checkbook open and available for public examination.

Much has been accomplished, but much still needs to be done.

Government officials at all levels across Wyoming are becoming more transparent and less work is being done in secret meetings and executive sessions.

Even some non-government boards not regulated by state laws are seeing the value and importance of transparency and the potential pitfalls of keeping things secret from the public.

Openness and transparency are vital for communities and individuals to trust their elected officials and boards.

Jim Angell’s voice is now silent, but his unwavering passion for openness in government has begun to take hold across the state.

-Cody Enterprise