Local government works best in the open and transparent, and most of the time, it is. Agendas get posted and backup materials go out before a vote. Residents get a chance to speak throughout the process and before decisions become final.

But this year in Sarasota County, that process has broken down in ways that should concern every resident.

That is why the Argus Foundation launched the Sunshine Accountability Alert, a public awareness campaign. It looks back at a public meeting and tells residents when a commissioner, manager, administrator, or government attorney raised a matter of real policy significance without putting it on the published agenda, without appropriate backup materials, or without public comment before a vote as required by Florida law. Each alert will name who raised the item, who made the motion, who seconded it, and how the vote went.

This is not about routine business. A pothole repair or a future workshop needs no advance notice or backup documents. Decisions that change how the public's business gets done, and how public money is spent, do.

The Alert started because of exactly this kind of decision. In August, commissioners voted, with no advance notice on the agenda, to re-negotiate the County Administrator's and County Attorney's contracts, stripping their annual performance review and replacing it with an automatic raise tied to state pay formulas meant for elected commissioners. Residents had no idea until after the vote had passed.

Once the Argus Foundation alerted the public, residents took notice, and finalizing those contract changes has, at least for now, paused. That is what public awareness can do.

Two more examples show the same pattern. On Live Local Act compliance, commissioners discussed and voted at a public meeting, but the item was never on the noticed agenda, no backup materials were provided, and the public had no chance to comment before the vote. That decision has since drawn legal challenge and public criticism.

In February, commissioners discussed and voted, at a public meeting, to remove proposed charter amendments on the county's authority to borrow in an emergency and refinance to save money. Again, the item was not on the noticed agenda, no backup materials were provided, and the public had no chance to comment before the vote.

None of these are small matters. They touch on who runs the county, whether the law gets followed, and how government can borrow against taxpayers in a crisis.

As a business leader, I understand the instinct to move quickly and skip process. But there is a real difference between efficiency and exclusion. When decisions like these are made without notice, documentation, or the public comment the law requires, that is not efficiency.

That is what the Sunshine Accountability Alert is for, and it only works if people are watching and speak out against this lack of transparency. While we sincerely hope that we do not have to issue any more of these alerts, follow the Argus Foundation on Facebook, Instagram, X, and LinkedIn so you don't miss one if it has to be issued.

Christine Robinson is the Chief Executive Officer of The Argus Foundation.