Quiet-spoken and demure, Colleen M. Murphy shouldn’t be underestimated. As executive director of the Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission, she takes on the most powerful in the state — from judges to constitutionally elected officials.
The commission’s decisions often send shudders down the spines of public officials who prefer that their e-mails and decisions never see the light of day.
Described as thoughtful and eloquent, Murphy stands strong against legislative and executive branch efforts to erode the state’s Freedom of Information Act, despite the controversy and wrath the FOI Commission’s actions often ignite.
Although the commission doesn’t hold significant purse strings — it operates on less than $2 million annually, a small portion of the $18 billion annual state budget — its rulings and court appeals set important precedents that promote public access to government meetings and records.
In June, she received the Bice Clemow Award, the highest award given to a public official by the Connecticut Council on Freedom of Information (CCFOI), an organization of journalists who promote, preserve and protect the public’s access to government.
Thomas Scheffey, president of the CCFOI and a senior writer with the Connecticut Law Tribune, said the award recognized Murphy for defending the FOI Act from “literally scores of destructive new bills designed to weaken the act with new exemptions and exceptions.”
“Calm, thoughtful and focused, Colleen has been able to successfully defend the public’s right to know in difficult legislative battles,” said Scheffey, who recalled a controversial FOI Commission ruling allowing the New Haven Register’s access to a videotape taken by some young men who later pled guilty in the shooting death of a young woman bystander. “When [Murphy] was forcefully questioned by a TV reporter, Colleen defended the decision to release the tape — in the face of charges that it had no news value and was a disturbing subject. She upheld the FOIC position that it was not for the police or prosecutors to decide what information is in good taste, or safe for public consumption.”
G. Claude Albert, the legislative chair for CCFOI and a former managing editor of news operations at the Hartford Courant, calls Murphy “a passionate champion of the people’s right to know.”
“To the extent that Connecticut’s citizens can keep their state and town officials accountable, they owe a big debt to Colleen Murphy,” Albert said. “Her integrity, her grasp of the issues and her eloquence on behalf of good public policy make her the go-to person in these situations.”
Scheffey also noted that although Murphy had big shoes to fill when she replaced Mitchell Pearlman, who headed the FOI Commission for 30 years before retiring in 2005, she exerted her own style of leadership and took the commission to “new to new heights of efficiency during some of its most challenging times.”
Pearlman is proud of his protégé. “Colleen Murphy is now recognized nationally and internationally as one of the leading experts in government transparency, privacy and ethics laws,” he said. “Today, during some of the most challenging times, Colleen Murphy continues to make the case for open and accountable government everywhere in Connecticut. She has become the state’s unquestioned champion of the public’s right to know. Every political leader in Connecticut knows it; the state’s journalism community knows it; we know it; and so do the thousands of people who utilize the FOI Act on a daily or even an occasional basis.”
Murphy started working for the FOI Commission fresh out of law school in 1990. “From the beginning, the commission saw in her that rare combination of eloquence in demeanor and expression, extraordinary knowledge of the law, superb people skills and an undeniable passion for helping others,” Pearlman said in an e-mail.
Christopher Powell, managing editor of the Journal Inquirer, also praises Murphy. “She has the patient and gentle disposition needed for handling controversy but her dedication to openness and accountability in government is unshakeable,” Powell said. “She is tireless in heading off or minimizing the threats to freedom of information that constantly arise from special interests. Her work is indeed public service.”
Vigilance Needed
Murphy describes her job as a never-ending battle against efforts to erode the state’s FOI law. “The main word I use to describe my job is vigilance,” said Murphy, who admits that she always worries when leaving the state Capitol during the legislative session.
“In a blink of an eye, something can be taken out of the law. We work hard to avoid pushbacks on the law. Any year that we come out of a legislative session and nothing bad has happened, we feel really good.”
Pearlman agrees, and notes that Murphy spends countless hours with legislators to make them understand the FOI implications of proposed legislation.
“On numerous occasions, she — along with a small coterie of colleagues — must stand up to powerful interest groups that seek to erode the public’s right to know through legislation that eats away at our Freedom of Information laws,” Pearlman said.
Murphy emphasizes that not losing ground and adapting the law to today’s new world is vital to the commission. That new world includes electronic government files and vendors contracted by the state to perform government functions. In 1975, government files existed only on paper, and privatization of government functions were not as commonplace, she pointed out.
Shares Credit
Modest about her own accomplishments, Murphy makes it clear that many should be credited for fighting the good fight. She is quick to point out the achievements of others: the FOI commission’s staff; Pearlman, who trained her for the position she now holds; the advocacy of the Connecticut Council on the Freedom of Information; and numerous journalists, such as Robert Estabrook and Dick Ahles, pioneering FOI advocates who worked diligently for about 20 years to convince state lawmakers to adopt the FOI Act.
Ahles, a retired vice president of WFSB Channel 3, points out that while Murphy had a tough act to follow in succeeding Pearlman, “she has been a more than worthy successor and a true champion of the public’s right to know.”
Since taking the rein from Pearlman, the commission has nearly doubled — from 40 to 70 annually — education outreach sessions it conducts for civic and government groups.
The commission has also seen a significant growth in the number of complaints during the past four years, from about 500 complaints to 800 complaints.
Although approximately 25 percent of the FOI complaints are made by the media, the balance is brought by citizens and businesses. For the citizens who lodge the complaints, it is largely issues that concern them personally, Murphy said.
Her multi-tasking talent gets further praise from Pearlman. “Murphy uses multiple talents — effective administrator, lawyer, educator, advocate, judge, disciplinarian and partner — as the commission’s executive director. In addition, she interacts with people representing many different and conflicting interests and works with citizens who need the commission’s help in understanding the law,” he said. “In addition, she has to be available to the news media virtually 24-7 for interviews and commentary.”
Murphy is proud of the global influence of the Connecticut’s FOI Act, which serves as a model in other states and countries.
Recalling visitors from Mexico, which recently adopted a Connecticut’s model that includes a similar hearing process, Murphy said that they were astounded with Connecticut’s law.
“They couldn’t believe there was a place where they could come and government had to defend itself as to why it wouldn’t disclose documents or hold meetings in public session,” she said.
“On the grand scale, the FOI Act has gained notoriety nationally and globally. And until recently, there has been no other entity like it. We’ve been looked upon as a model,” said Murphy, who noted that she is most proud that Connecticut continues to stand up to the forces that work against such openness.
