COEUR d'ALENE - Lawrence Wasden is passionate about protecting the public's right to access government records.

The Idaho Attorney General discussed the state's public information laws during a meeting with Press reporters Thursday at the newspaper's Coeur d'Alene office. Wasden also discussed two other issues he's passionate about: Internet safety and scams. He frequently cited the Idaho codes that specifically protect citizens' rights to access government documents, and the state's open meeting laws.

Wasden acknowledged that the consequences for government agencies that violate the state's open meeting laws - a $50 fine for an unintentional first offense, and $500 for a second or intentional offense - might seem small.

"Regardless of the dollar amounts, it would be devastating to me if a court was to say, 'You didn't do your job,'" Wasden said.

When citizens encounter problems accessing public records, Wasden said it's often because the government employees creating the obstacle don't realize they are violating a law. Other times, he said, the failure of a government agency to be as open as the law requires is because someone doesn't want to "air their dirty laundry."

"But you're entitled to see the dirty laundry," Wasden said. "That's the process."

Another project important to Wasden is his agency's work to protect children from Internet predators. The state's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, a coalition of law enforcement officers and criminal prosecutors, was created with a federal grant.

Wasden said he visits schools each year to talk about Internet safety, and distribute a video his office created that shows parents how to keep their kids safe.

During a presentation at a Post Falls middle school several years ago, a young girl got up and went to speak with a detective who was visiting the school also, Wasden said. The girl told the detective that she was in Internet contact with a man in Texas who was on his way to get her. Law enforcement officers were able to intervene and keep the girl safe.

There have been other instances where Wasden's program has motivated children to speak up when they are being preyed on sexually online.

"Not often in public life do you get to say 'I made a difference,'" Wasden said. "In this arena, we definitely did make a difference."

Wasden is also trying to make a difference by working to raise awareness of the ever-evolving world of scammers. He said these scams often prey upon the elderly and other people who can be easy targets.

"They're very creative people that do this," Wasden said. "And it's absolute cruelty."

Wasden said he plans to return to Coeur d'Alene sometime this fall to help lead a seminar on open meetings. The attorney general's office partners regularly with Idahoans for Openness in Government to present these sessions designed to help educate public officials, government agency employees and members of the media about the state's public records and open meeting laws.

"Everybody needs to know where the sheet music is," Wasden said.

Staff writer Maureen Dolan contributed to this report.