Politics & Government
Sunshine Week: Shining Light Onto Public Governance
In observance of Sunshine Week, Patch is providing some information on your rights to observe your government in action, and some resources for you to explore open records yourself.
Want to know how much the superintendent makes? That's an open record.
Want to watch Whitefish Bay officials deliberate and decide what to do about a proposed development? That's an open meeting.
Wisconsin has a long history of open government, and strong laws that support it. Whitefish Bay Patch is observing Sunshine Week 2012, which begins today. As part of that observation, we want to share with you some of the open government resources available to anyone.
Find out what's happening in Whitefish Baywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
You have the right to see the records the government keeps — from health inspection reports to employee salaries to the entire municipal or school district budget — and to be present at the meetings where governmental business gets done. The expectation is that government is open — if they want to close the meeting or keep a document confidential, they need to say why. And in most cases, they aren't allowed to ask who you are or why you want to see the record you're requesting.
If you know of an open government issue you'd like Whitefish Bay Patch to look into, email Local Editor Jeff Rumage.
Find out what's happening in Whitefish Baywith free, real-time updates from Patch.
See for yourself
The Internet has made it easier to access a lot of public information. As governments go digital, the amount of information available online has grown. Here are links to some online databases you can search.
- Who's not paying their taxes? Search by name or city
- How much to Wisconsin public school employees earn? by the Appleton Post Crescent
- Look up license and credential information for doctors, nurses, hairstylists and more from the Department of Safety and Professional Services
- Has your child's day care had any violations? Look in the Youngstar database
- See how students in your school district perform From the State Department of Public Instruction
- Search court records
- Find out if someone is in prison
- See which sex offenders live in your area
Local resources
Find Whitefish Bay tax records here.
Access Whitefish Bay Village Board agendas, supporting documents and minutes here.
Access Whitefish Bay School Board agendas, supporting documents and minutes here.
To request access to local records, go to:
5300 N. Marlborough Drive
(414) 962-6690
1200 E. Fairmount Avenue
(414) 963-3901
Milwaukee County Courthouse
901 North 9th Street, Milwaukee, WI 53233
(414) 278-5362
State resources
If you want to dig into the legal aspects of it, here are links to the statutes and guidelines from the Wisconsin Department of Justice.
- Wisconsin Open Meetings Law
- Wisconsin Public Records Law
- Learn about open government on the Department of Justice website.
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