A state lawmaker is trying again to bar the use of nondisclosure agreements to silence public employees in Colorado, this time applying the prohibition to local governments as well as the state.

“Nondisclosure agreements imposed on government employees or prospective employees that effectively prohibit government employees from disclosing details about their government service obstruct … fundamental principles of government transparency and public accountability,” says Senate Bill 23-053, introduced by Republican Sen. Barbara Kirkmeyer of Brighton.

“The details of public business should not be hidden from public view by means of nondisclosure agreements imposed on government employees as a condition of their employment or in connection with their leaving government service.”

The bill comes two months after The Denver Gazette’s David Migoya reported that Colorado is increasingly requiring employees to sign nondisclosure clauses in financial settlements they make with the state. Migoya found more than 80 settlement agreements with state employees totaling more than $4 million, “each with a non-disclosure clause preventing them from discussing it with anyone.”