In November, the Transportation Policy Committee met behind closed doors to vote in support of a plan to slash student parking. According to chair Daniel Arovas, the hearing was not opened to the public for fear that observers could unduly influence the student and staff representatives who make up most of the voting seats on the committee.

The TPC is not alone in barring public scrutiny; a whole host of advisory boards meet behind closed doors, including the new Closed Circuit TV Governance Committee.

Though college councils and Associated Students are asked to appoint representatives to these boards, such practices keep students from ensuring that their interests are in fact represented. On the contrary, this very fear — that transportation committee members would feel obligated to vote in the interest of their constituents if they could observe the proceedings — results in a process that lacks any semblance of transparency, a cornerstone of democracy.

The university has already ruled that California’s strict open meeting laws and public access protections do not cover its advisory boards. However, administrators must take steps to restore the legitimacy of committees that are designed to provide public participation in the making of university policies.

Without full public access, these already purely advisory boards will lose their remaining relevance to students. Considering the impact many of these committees have on student life, that would be quite a shame.