There’s a bill before the Assembly that would restrict public access to information that is currently available. It’s a bad bill, and it should be rejected.
It contains the following language that would prevent police from releasing information about vehicle accidents in a timely manner.
”No state or local law enforcement agency, including the New Jersey State Police, shall make available an accident report, nor any information contained in it, to any other person until 90 days have elapsed from the date of the accident.”
It exempts the auto insurance industry, vehicle owners, people injured and government investigators.
It would change current law that says, “Every citizen of this state shall have the right,” during regular business hours and under supervision, “to inspect and copy such reports . . . .”
Accident reports are also government records under OPRA.
As it is now, police departments all over New Jersey including Central Jersey fail to release all sorts of information in a timely manner. Some balk at releasing any information, including arrests in some cases, which are supposed to become public information within 24 hours.
Currently, if an accident were to result in an investigation for vehicular homicide, information as to identities and circumstances is supposed to available to any requesting that information within 24 hours.
Passage of A801 would change this and embargo such information for 90 days from access by all except for a select few.
This bill would not benefit the public.
The purpose of OPRA is to promote transparency in government and ready access to government records. A801 flies in the face of that policy.
George H. White, executive director of the New Jersey Press Association, points out in a position paper opposing A801, that an example of the way in which the bill would interfere with that public policy can be found in the 2007 automobile accident involving Gov. Corzine.
If A801 was in effect when that accident occurred, the public would have been denied access to any information contained in the accident report for 90 days.
The same can be said for a school bus accident such as the one that occurred recently on Valley Road. We wouldn’t have been able to find out how many students were on the bus or their conditions or how the accident occurred.
This bill would block the need for OPRA in providing that government records shall be readily accessible to the public and the right of access.

