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"Oil Execs Plead Guilty to Bribing Lawmakers," "Federal Agents Raid Legislative Offices," "Three Legislators Arrested in Corruption Probe," "VECO Backroom Dealings Top Headlines" and "Convicted Republican Lawmaker Reports to Prison" are the kind of salacious headlines one expects to see paging through the Enquirer while in line at Safeway. It is the kind of event one memorizes for a high school American history test, but soon forgets the details - who was unfaithful in the Petticoat Affair? Where is Teapot Dome? What was Watergate?

But few can forget (nor should they) the scandalous Alaska headlines plastered boldly on newsprint, reported in the evening news and chattered about on talk radio. This is real life. This is your government, the people you elected. And your government does not work like you deserve.

Ethical lapses across the country and Alaska helped usher in new leadership in the 2006 election. Incumbents found it particularly difficult to win re-election bids under waves of controversy and a "throw the bums" out sentiment. Gov. Sarah Palin, Sen. Joe Thomas, D-Thomas, and I each won by considerable margins pledging a more open and transparent process and a new kind of government.

The voter backlash also had an enduring effect on public policy this last year. The Legislature quickly and unanimously passed a new omnibus ethics bill including rules for lawmakers, lobbyists and special interest to live by. Get caught and convicted of a crime against the public trust - lose your pension. Wine and dine with a professional, corporate lobbyist - expect it to be disclosed to the public and front page news. Receive a 'gift' from anyone, birthday gift or otherwise - the people have a right to know how much it's worth and from whom it came. Better make sure to keep your receipt in case you need to exchange!

So with all of the work proudly done on ethics legislation, constantly flaunted as a "look, see what we did" success story, the Legislature now has a completely ethical government, right? No one has to worry about our honest politicians any longer, right? The sideboards and rules that were put in place will achieve the job of open and honest government, right?

Wrong. The most obvious practice of the old, closed government ways is still active today in the Capitol. Lawmakers routinely make decisions about the passage of bills and which programs to fund behind closed doors. Doors that are closed to the press, closed to the public and closed to you. Nobody knows whether your legislator stood up for you, rolled over, tried to play both sides or worse. Though it's out of sight, it should give no one peace of mind.

Interestingly, the Legislature created a solution and adopted the Open Meetings Act that prescribes strict restrictions on closed door meetings. It is required by law that all meetings of school boards, assemblies, city councils and other legislative bodies be open to the public with very few exceptions.

The most glaring exemption lies in the Open Meeting Guidelines that specifically allow for caucus meetings to be held behind closed doors, so long as discussion is limited to 'political strategy.' Politicians may care about 'political strategy,' but I haven't heard one average, everyday Alaskan claim that 'political strategy' is more important than honest government.

Shouldn't the state Legislature be held to the same open and transparent meetings laws as all legislative bodies in the state, you ask? Shouldn't the public be involved in the public process and know what goes on behind closed doors, you ask? Absolutely, yes! These are your laws we are empowered to write, your money we budget and your government at work. We are your representatives.

I introduced House Bill 342 to open all meetings to the public and keep our Legislature bound by the same rules as every other legislative body in the state. It will be a tough battle to move the Legislature to open meetings because it seems to be the preferred way to do business. The image of a dimly lit, cigar smoke filled room with deal-making lobbyists and legislators comes to mind.

Any legislator who claims the subjects discussed in closed caucus "are restricted to political strategy and procedural motions" is probably lying! But who is to know? The door is closed to the press, me and most importantly - you.

• Rep. Scott Kawasaki is a freshman Democrat who represents Fairbanks.