The Ohio Attorney General has put government transparency training online. Now, local government officials will be able to learn about and respond to transparency requests with video training instead of on-site training previously offered by the AG’s office. The training information will also be available for anyone in the general public that might wish to learn more about Ohio’s approach to government transparency.
The training is broken out into 13 videos which range from a few minutes in length to a half hour. In total all of the videos take approximately 3 hours to get through. The in-person training will also continue to be offered, and quizzes are required both online and off.
State law requires government officials to complete the training at least once during their term.
The training lessons can be completed at the user’s own pace, and the entire three-hour training does not need to be completed in a single sitting. Users are able to return to the videos they have completed if a specific topic is of particular interest. The online training is approved for CLE credit, as are live Sunshine Laws trainings, and can be completed at home or in the office.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said in a statement that he hopes that by putting the training online, the numbers of public employees who make it through training will increase, and so too will government wide response to transparency.
“The public’s access to government is the cornerstone of a vital and participatory democracy, and Ohio’s Sunshine Laws are among the most comprehensive open government laws in the nation,” said Attorney General DeWine.