By Michael Glenn
This is a column I’ve been waiting to write for a little while.
Going back to the 2024 primary elections, I’ve had a great working relationship with the Reno County Clerk’s Office for investigation purposes for government-related stories.
We should be thankful to have a county clerk’s office that takes care of business, simply put. When I’ve walked in there to request a record, I have always received a quick response and copy of what I’m looking for in a reasonable amount of time.
While this may sound like a common thing that we should come to expect, unfortunately, many counties and states fail to be transparent to its citizens and journalists by struggling to communicate with the press and provide records from a public records request.
There have been many stories that have been made possible — or at least easier to write — because some government records are not readily available online or in a public website. For example, stories that talk about voting registration records, detailed voting election results or any topic that requires materials not on a website all derive from a public records request at the county.
A quick phone call to Jenna Fager at the clerk’s office, now our elected Reno County Clerk, has always warranted a quick response and all of the information I requested.
This column is especially unique this week because for the first time, I registered to vote Wednesday!
For a brief period of time, as I told my parents, I was the state’s youngest voter. While I’m officially not able to vote until my birthday in a couple of months, I’m glad to be a part of a system I’ve been an advocate of since this publication began.
The process to register was very simple and that’s partly due to the professionalism and diligent work of our county clerk’s office. I simply walked into the Courthouse Annex, asked to register to vote, and was given a form that took me maybe two minutes. I had a couple of questions about registering which were knowledgeably answered by the worker helping me.
So, for all of you who are able to vote and choose not to, there’s no excuse. Literally. Two minutes.
Anyway, going into the new year, I hope to continue our efficient and working relationship. As the press, we represent you, the readers, at public meetings and government coverage. The clerk’s office does a great job at being transparent and readily available for any records we may ask for.
