Reintroducing the Transparency Project, and an invitation

Democracy depends on more than elections; it depends on transparency.  

 In Montana, the right to know how government decisions are made and how public dollars are spent is not a privilege, but a constitutional guarantee. The reality, though, is that exercising that right is often harder than it should be. We founded the Montana Transparency Project to narrow that gap for everyday Montanans, and we are now inviting new partners — like yourself — to join us in protecting and strengthening this constitutional right. 

Under Montana’s first constitution written in 1889, there was no right to know. In fact, corruption was the norm. Copper Kings bought legislators, roamed the halls of government, and the government made decisions to serve industry interests over the people. 

Given the opportunity to rewrite our constitution, the framers in the 1972 Constitutional Convention included the right to know as the citizen’s weapon against corruption and as a mandate for transparency. The framers believed that the right to know would improve the government’s responsiveness to citizens and would increase citizen confidence and satisfaction in government. Today, it is still one of our most powerful tools for transparency.  

But the words in our constitution don’t do anything by themselves. The right requires citizens like you to exercise your right to know to keep our government accountable. Each of us — the founders of Montana Transparency Project — saw how the reality of the right to know did not live up to the expectations of our framers. In law offices, as journalists and as citizens, the right to know felt hard to access and hard to navigate.  

We founded the Montana Transparency Project to narrow the gap between the reality of and the ideal right to know. We aimed to educate Montanans about their right to know, to help them write and submit information requests to the government, and to support them throughout that process. We field requests for assistance from citizens across the state who are looking for answers or managing the information request process.

Now, with more than two years of experience, we’re looking for more help. We’re a small organization with a big mission, and we are powered by our interest in open government and civic accountability, and at the end of the day we’re powered by our own volunteer power. If you are interested in learning how to help others navigate the right to know, we would love to hear from you. If you know someone who might be a good fit, send them our way. Email us at info@montanatransparencyproject.org.  

You certainly don’t need to have special training as a lawyer, journalist or anything else to get involved. What matters most is a commitment to transparency and a belief that civic engagement is our tool for a better common future.  

Open government only works when citizens work to make it so. Montana Transparency Project is here to help realize that goal, so if you have an information request, or if you want to get involved with this project, send us a message. We’re always here to help. 

Jacob Linfesty is president of Montana Transparency Project.