Ga. Lt. Governor hopes open records law helps win national title
Georgia's Lt. Governor didn't mince words when describing what he hopes is the potential impact of the state's new open records law regarding college athletic departments.
“I hope it brings us a national championship is what I hope," Casey Cagle said via OnlineAthens.com.
The state's debated new open records requirements were part of Senate Bill 323 signed into law on Monday, meaning that Georgia athletic departments now have 90 business days to respond to Freedom of Information Act requests. Cagle's comments come not longer after a Georgia state representative had said the amendment regarding athletic departments to the bill was designed to help recruiting efforts.
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Yes, the state government really appears to be trying to get in the business of athletic success.
The law comes not long after the hire of new Georgia football coach Kirby Smart, the former defensive coordinator at Alabama, a school in a state that doesn't have a specific timeframe to respond to open records requests. Information like contract details of athletic department employees can be obtained via FOIA requests.
Smart had said he discussed changes to the open records law with members of Geogia's legislature in a visit with them earlier this year, though he previously declined to take any credit for the bill. He reiterated those sentiments on Tuesday, saying any references to "Kirby's Law" were "ridiculous."
“I had very little to do with that,” Smart said on AM 680 The Fan. “I made a visit to the state capitol. I was asked about some things that were different. … From there everybody’s taken it and run with it.”
Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity said before the bill was passed into law that the school's athletic department can get overwhelmed with requests and the amendment would help give the school a chance to respond in "a timely manner."
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
