Lawmakers set to reform Massachusetts’ public records rules

BOSTON — Some rays of sunshine may be filtering through a culture of secrecy that often permeates the Massachusetts Statehouse.

The Legislature appears on track to reform the state’s much maligned public records law. And, in a break from typical routine on Beacon Hill, a conference committee of lawmakers opted to hold negotiations over a final version of the bill in full public view.

Democratic Sen. President Stan Rosenberg and Republican Gov. Charlie Baker also agreed — the latter in part — to a request from The Associated Press to release a week’s worth of emails and daily schedules despite their own exemptions from the records law.

But the drive toward greater openness is not without speed bumps.

The bill would not remove legislative immunity, which lawmakers have justified as necessary to, among other things, protect the privacy of correspondence with constituents.