FOI Reform Under Way in Iowa, Too...

DES MOINES -- A group of Iowa lawmakers is set to review the state's open records and open meetings laws after a string of accusations that Iowa government entities are violating those laws...

"The public has a right to know what their government is doing and how we're spending their money," Jochum said.

Rep. Vicki Lensing, D-Iowa City, is co-chairing a special legislative committee that will meet Sept. 6 to review the laws.

She notes that other forms of communication, including text messages and e-mails, didn't exist when Iowa's open records laws were written decades ago.

"As time has gone on, we have put Band-Aids on it, and I think it's just to the point now we need to look at the whole thing," Lensing said.

Kathleen Richardson, executive secretary of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, said the group has identified continuing problems in Iowa.

Those problems include what she believes is the increasing secrecy surrounding the hiring of public employees, as government entities keep the names of candidates private and hold interviews behind closed doors...

More here....