宾夕法尼亚州议员周三将一项法案送交州长乔什·夏皮罗（Josh Shapiro）签署，该法案旨在堵塞一项关键政府透明度法律中的漏洞。
Pennsylvania lawmakers on Wednesday sent a bill to Gov. Josh Shapiro’s desk that closes a loophole in a key government transparency law.
ANGELA COULOUMBIS/Spotlight PA 这项被称为宾夕法尼亚州《阳光法案》（Sunshine Act）的法律要求地方和州政府机构（包括学区董事会和市政委员会）在公开会议召开前24小时公布其投票议程。其初衷是：公众越了解政府将就何事进行投票，就越能在决策过程中发出自己的声音。
ANGELA COULOUMBIS/Spotlight PA The law, known as Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act, requires local and state government bodies, including school boards and municipal councils, to publicize their voting agendas 24 hours in advance of public meetings. The idea is that the more people know about what their government is voting on, the better positioned they are to have a voice in the decision-making process.
但州最高法院去年底的一项裁决扩大了政府可用来规避24小时通知要求、并在会议议程中临时增设项目的有限例外清单。
But a state Supreme Court decision late last year expanded the limited list of exceptions governments can use to circumvent the 24-hour notice requirement and tack on last-minute items to their meeting agendas.
良政倡导者几乎立即警告称，该裁决可能导致政府机构偷偷就可能棘手或不受欢迎的议题进行投票。
Good-government advocates almost immediately warned the ruling could lead to government bodies sneaking in votes on potentially thorny or unpopular issues.
由州参议员帕特里克·斯特凡诺（Patrick Stefano，共和党-费耶特县）和贾雷特·科尔曼（Jarrett Coleman，共和党-利哈伊县）起草、并已送交夏皮罗签署的这项法案，既澄清又收回了对24小时规则的例外规定。
bill authored by state Sens. Patrick Stefano (R., Fayette) and Jarrett Coleman (R., Lehigh) and headed to Shapiro for his signature, both clarifies and claws back exceptions to the 24-hour rule.
该法案于6月在州参议院一致通过，并于周三在州众议院以182票对21票通过，周三预计将是本届两年期会议的最后一个正式投票日。州长发言人表示，夏皮罗打算签署该法案。
It unanimously passed the state Senate in June and cleared the House 182-21 on Wednesday, which will likely be the last formal voting day of the two-year session. A spokesperson for the governor said he intends to sign it.
根据目前的《阳光法案》文本，24小时通知要求的例外情况包括：紧急事项；临时但“微不足道”的议题；以及居民或纳税人在公开会议上提出的、需要即时投票或转交工作人员处理的事项。
The Sunshine Act, as it is currently written, allows exceptions to the 24-hour notice requirement for emergency matters; last-minute but “de minimus” issues; and matters a resident or taxpayer raises during a public meeting that require an on-the-spot vote or a referral to staff.
法律中似乎提及了第四项例外情况，这引发了分歧并导致了高院的裁决：政府董事会可经简单多数投票，将临时议题增列议程以供讨论。
There is an apparent fourth exception referenced in the law that caused the disagreement that led to the high court’s decision: A government board can add a last-minute item to the agenda for discussion by a simple majority vote.
利哈伊县的一个学区董事会曾在2021年利用该条款，将一项临时议题增列投票议程，以批准一份教师工会合同。
A school board in Lehigh County used that language in 2021 to add a last-minute item to its voting agenda and ratify a teachers’ union contract.
当时，科尔曼提起诉讼，主张该条款并非旨在成为一项独立的例外，而必须被视为仅在其他例外之一适用时才生效。宾夕法尼亚州最高法院不同意这一观点。支持堵住这一漏洞的宾夕法尼亚新闻媒体协会表示，自该判决作出以来，其知晓一起涉及“24小时规则”争议的案例。（Spotlight PA 是该协会成员。）去年12月，匹兹堡郊区的大拉特罗布学区董事会投票聘请新任法律顾问。聘请新任法律顾问的议程项目提前24小时在会议议程中公布，但描述中未包含某些关键细节。
At the time, Coleman sued, arguing the clause was not intended to be a standalone exception, and instead must be viewed as coming into play if one of the other exceptions applies. The state Supreme Court disagreed The Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association, which supported closing the loophole, said it’s aware of one instance involving controversy over the 24-hour rule since the decision. (Spotlight PA is a member of the association.) In December, the Greater Latrobe School Board in suburban Pittsburgh voted to hire a new solicitor The item to hire a new solicitor was publicized in a meeting agenda 24 hours in advance, but certain key details were not included in the description.
斯特凡诺和科尔曼的法案澄清，多数票条款是一项程序性策略，而非独立的例外。
Stefano and Coleman’s bill clarifies that the majority-vote clause is a procedural tactic, rather than a standalone exception.
州众议员罗伯特·弗里曼（民主党-北安普顿县）提出了一个类似的法案。除了堵住漏洞外，该法案还将增加一项新的例外，允许就次要且具体的行政事务（如某些许可批准和低成本市政维修）进行投票，前提是推迟投票会造成过度困难。
A similar bill was introduced by state Rep. Robert Freeman (D., Northampton). In addition to closing the loophole, it would have added a new exception allowing for votes on minor and specific administrative matters (such as some permit approvals and low-cost municipal repairs) if delaying a vote would create undue hardship.
弗里曼本周在接受采访时表示，他之所以让法案内容更全面，是因为代表乡镇和县的团体提出担忧，认为地方辖区在开展合法业务时会受到阻碍。
In an interview this week, Freeman said he made his bill more expansive because groups representing townships and counties raised concerns that local jurisdictions would be hampered when carrying out legitimate business.
他说，他想给这些团体更多灵活性，同时维护《阳光法案》的精神及其增加选民参与政府事务的目标。
He said he wanted to give those groups more flexibility while upholding the spirit of the Sunshine Act and its goal of increasing voter participation in government.
弗里曼表示，他认为自己的提案更好，但他支持堵住本可能成为危险漏洞的条款——尤其是当全州各市政当局正在考虑棘手问题时，例如是否允许数据中心在其辖区内运营。
Freeman said he believes his proposal was the better of the two, but he supports closing what could have been a dangerous loophole — particularly as municipalities around the state are considering difficult issues, such as whether to allow data centers to operate within their borders.
“这一”他指立法澄清法律的努力，“旨在建立问责制。”科尔曼周三在一份声明中呼应了这一观点。
“This,” he said of the legislative effort to clarify the law, “is designed to build accountability.”In a statement Wednesday, Coleman echoed the sentiment.
“透明度只有在公众能看到即将发生的事情时才有效，”他说，并补充道：“今天的……投票传递了一个明确的信息，即宾夕法尼亚州民有权在地方政府就重大事项采取行动前获得通知，而不是事后。”
“Transparency only works when the public can see what’s coming,” he said, adding: “Today’s … vote sends a clear message that Pennsylvanians deserve notice before their local governments act on consequential matters, not after.”