State open-meetings and records laws, often colloquially termed "sunshine laws," affect public higher education systems in numerous ways. Perhaps most visibly, the laws shape the governance activities of institutional boards and high-level campus leaders. Since their beginnings in the 1970s and 1908s, the laws have become an institutionalized element in public higher-education governance in most states. Unfortunately, however, the laws have only rarely been investigated systematically. This study begins an ongoing examination of sunshine laws with a review of the existing literature. Researchers are beginning an analysis of the current status of these laws using data from six selected cases plus data from a recent national governance survey. Data gathering is not complete; this paper reports on the literature review and discusses the characteristics, dimensions, and variations of the laws currently in place. It considers aspects of the laws deemed harmful or beneficial to effective governance, and describes several potential challenges to the laws. The paper concludes with cautions regarding the complexity of ascertaining the laws' benefits, costs, and ultimate effects. An appendix describes the ongoing study. (Contains 52 references.) (Author/SLD)