Taxpayers deserve to know how their hard-earned dollars are being spent. That is the primary reason behind the newspaper's California Public Records Act requests of Sutter and Yuba counties and the cities of Marysville and Yuba City for the names, titles and salaries of current county and city employees.

The newspaper is entitled to this information — the California Supreme Court ruled as such in August 2007. Our objective is to collect this information for a database on the Appeal-Democrat Web site. The A-D already offers several popular public database offerings, including those with information about Yuba City crime, foreclosures and food facility inspection reports; check them out on the "Info Center" at www.appealdemocrat.com. The planned public salaries database is one more effort toward providing readers with information affecting their lives.

Truth be told, we're not blazing any new trails with the creation of this database; newspapers in cities across the country have put this pay information online. Also, Joe Citizen can find out the salary of any public employee by filing a Freedom of Information request. We just intend to make it easier for the public to access the information they have the right, by law, to possess.

In the case of Sutter County, job titles and salaries are already available on a county Web site. So if you know your neighbor "John Jones" has been working in the Planning Department for 20 years, it's pretty simple to estimate his salary. The A-D database just provides a one-stop resource.

More than ever, as people attempt to cope during these really tough economic times, they should know where their money is going, especially when so much goes to taxes to pay government employees' salaries.

In addition, the database will also allow readers to make comparisons between public section pay and salaries in the private industry. And face it: some people are fascinated with knowing how much other people make.

Our requests have been met with some vocal opposition. The primary objection, according to the phone calls, e-mails and faxes I've received, is the publication of employees' names. As I've told everyone who's contacted me, including Sutter County officials, no final determination has been made concerning the publication of names. The newspaper is sensitive to the concerns that have been expressed, and we will take those concerns into consideration as we construct the salaries database. Again, no final determination has been made concerning the publication of names. We are in the information-gathering stage and will make an informed decision about how to present this public information.

It is not the newspaper's intention to "traumatize" employees, as a union rep wrote to me. We do not believe the database will provide information that could lead to identity theft; the salaries database will not include data such as Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses or e-mail addresses.

Public employees' salaries are public information and as such the public should have easy access to it.

You, the taxpayer, have a right to know.

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We're No. 1. or No. 2. We won't know for sure until October.

The Appeal-Democrat's work has been recognized with several awards in the 2008 Better Newspapers Contest, sponsored by the California Newspaper Publishers Association. Per custom, CNPA informs newspapers that winning entries have been awarded either first or second place, then hands out the prizes at a luncheon.

Breaking news coverage of the deadly early January storm, two front-page presentations and an editorial advocating local adoption of medical marijuana ID card programs were awarded the top prizes. In addition, reporter Nancy Pasternack, photo editor Chris Kaufman and photographer Nick Adams were named blue-ribbon finalists for their work.

We're not in this business for awards, but it sure is nice to be recognized by a jury of our peers for outstanding efforts.

- Len La Barth