Salt Lake City Police Chief Chris Burbank and police union President Tom Gallegos are tight.

Which explains how Gallegos can still be on the job after harassing two female co-workers - "I probably should not be alone in a room with you when you're on your knees," he told one - and sending porn from his city computer (a felony). Instead of firing Gallegos, Burbank has filled his personnel file with letters of reprimand.

Gallegos probably would rather not have the dirty details of his on-the-job sexual harassment training revealed. But even Chief Burbank couldn't help him.

West Jordan Republican Sen. Chris Buttars can. He's sponsoring legislation that would allow cops like Gallegos - with the complicity of police chiefs like Burbank - to keep their disciplinary records secret. Under the bill, which is backed by the Utah Chiefs of Police Association, officers would have to consent to release information about their bad acts.

Buttars' bill is part of lawmakers' annual chipping away at Utah's public records law. Rep. Mel Brown, R-Coalville, is sponsoring legislation that would allow government agencies to classify the minutes of meetings as "protected drafts." Orem Republican Sen. Margaret Dayton has carved out a special exemption allowing lawmakers to get "private, controlled or protected" information. And, joining the government rush to protect animal researchers, Fruit Heights Republican Sen. Greg Bell has drafted legislation to keep their names, addresses and phone numbers private - kid-glove treatment even University of Utah President Michael Young does not get.

Not all public records bills this year are bad for the public. Kanab Republican Rep. Mike Noel has a bill that would require some government associations to release their budgets. And Sandy Republican Sen. Wayne Niederhauser would put government financial information online.

But rather than starting with a presumption of openness - as the Government Records Access and Management Act directs - many lawmakers begin with a bunker mentality.

Attorney General's Chief of Law Enforcement Ken Wallentine argues Buttars' bill would only keep minor misconduct secret, giving police chiefs the flexibility to discipline without destroying an officer's career. He says serious offenses, those required for review by the Police Officer Standards and Training board - including criminal convictions, alcohol offenses and "moral turpitude" - still should be public.

"Officers are human. They're going to mess up," Wallentine says. "But there needs to be a buffer zone, a cushion."

But Buttars' bill leaves that judgment up to police chiefs and individual officers. And the way Burbank and Gallegos have been running the Salt Lake City cop shop, I'm not sure I trust the chiefs to consider the people before office politics.

Burbank routinely has thwarted the interests of the public and the media in reviewing city police discipline records. To keep particular cases secret, the chief simply does not review them - dozens in a city database are labeled "not considered." A few years ago, The Salt Lake Tribune requested all misconduct cases where the chief and the Civilian Review Board reached different conclusions. That request has become a lawsuit that the city continues to appeal in an effort to keep the records secret.

And last year, when someone associated with the review board confirmed a finding of excessive force in a case involving a 74-year-old Korean War vet roughed up in Liberty Park, Burbank and Gallegos launched a slash-and-burn campaign to find the source. Those records still have not been released because the chief has not reviewed it - more than a year later.

New Mayor Ralph Becker has been caught flatfooted by Burbank's dismal public records policy. After initially backing Buttars' bill, he's rethinking his position. The Society of Professional Journalists is trying to work out a compromise.

"This was presented to us as a cleanup piece of legislation," says Becker. "When I read the bill, it was a broader exemption for a police officer. It raised concerns for me."

Finally, someone might question the chief's version of events.

walsh@sltrib.com