BY MATT SCHOOLEY
Officials in Hopkinton are pleased with the outcome of an investigation Neighborhood News recently conducted of how open town governments are.
While some towns in the area were reluctant to give up information, Hopkinton complied with requests for town, police and school information.
SAU 66, which covers Hopkinton schools, was one of the districts subjected to our test.
Superintendent Brian Blake, who was present during the reporter’s request, said he was uncertain exactly what information was being requested.
The request was for a list of the district’s salaries and the most recent School District Meeting minutes. Although Blake said it was no problem getting the documents, he did note that it was not a common request.
“I was thinking (she was) from another town that was in the process of building schools, or separating from an SAU,” said Blake, who added that the reporter seemed guarded while asking for the materials. “I’d like to think we run a transparent operation. If people want the information, and it is legal and ethical that I give it to them, then I don’t have a problem giving it to them.”
The Hopkinton Police Department doesn’t often get requests in the area of the Right to Know Law. Ironically, the last request the department received came on a day several years ago – the last time Neighborhood News requested for public records.
From that day forward, Police Chief David Wheeler instituted a policy to have the log available on a clipboard in the office for anyone interested in seeing it.
Although there was a slight delay by the secretary who was asked for the information, our reporter was given the police log upon request.
“We update it every day, but no one ever looks at it. When she came in and asked for the log, our secretary called me right away because it hasn’t happened since she was in there. I told her to just give it to her, no questions asked,” said Wheeler.
In addition to the clipboard, at the end of every month the logs are posted online for the previous month’s arrests.
Wheeler said his department takes pride in its knowledge of the law.
“Our objective is to always be fully compliant. That’s our mission for everything. It isn’t an issue of how important it is to be able to get the information; it’s an issue of it being the law. We are always going to be compliant and make it simple for anyone to get the information they are looking for.”
Finally, the Hopkinton Town Hall passed our test as well, and without even a hint of trouble.
Interim Town Administrator Bob Veloski was not sure exactly where the records were located, which led to a slight delay, but every step of the way he apologized to the reporter for taking longer than anticipated.
“It’s public information, under RSA 91-A (the Right to Know Law),” Veloski said. “I’m not even supposed to ask you why you want it. That’s what the law says to do, and that’s what we do.”
Finance officer Bob Blanchette was able to help Veloski find the information, and he said it could have been anyone coming in, and he’d extend the same courtesy.
“It doesn’t matter who comes in here, whether it be President Bush or (a civilian). If you want the information, here you go,” Blanchette said.
Susan Koehler, a Contoocook resident, reacted to the results of the Right to Know test.
“It doesn’t surprise me that some people don’t want to give it out. It may sometimes be that the clerk just doesn’t know the law,” she said. “People in Hopkinton are educated and know what they’re supposed to be doing, so I am not surprised that the town did well. I trust people who work here.”