Dominican Municipalities Fail to Publish Council Decisions Online

In the Dominican Republic's Greater Santo Domingo area, a significant gap exists between legal requirements for municipal transparency and the information actually provided to citizens. Despite laws like Article 222 of Law 176-07, which mandates that city councils facilitate broad public information about their activities, many municipalities do not make their council decisions available or keep them updated on their websites.

This lack of accessibility clashes with Law 200-04 on Free Access to Public Information, which requires all public bodies, including municipalities, to ensure public access to official communications and use their digital portals for dissemination. Consequently, residents can be blindsided by decisions like street name changes, new service fees, or other council resolutions without prior notice or understanding.

While the National District's city council, led by Carolina Mejía, is noted as one of the few that consistently publishes its ordinances and resolutions, other municipalities lag behind. The Santo Domingo Este City Council, under pastor Dío Astacio, also provides access to its decisions. However, the Santo Domingo Norte Mayor's office, headed by Betty Gerónimo, reportedly fails to make council decisions readily available, despite publishing institutional memories and budget execution data.