A national crusader against violent video game is suing Omaha's police chief in connection with the Von Maur shootings.Attorney Jack Thompson said he wants to find out whether Robert Hawkins, 19, played any violent video games.Hawkins shot eight people to death, then killed himself at Von Maur on Dec. 5.
Within hours after the Westroads Mall shooting, police searched Hawkins' residence and seized computer equipment, including a laptop, two computer towers and a hard drive, search warrants show.Thompson, who spoke to KETV NewsWatch 7 by phone from Florida, said he wants to know what kind of video games are on the seized equipment."The public has a need to know, has a right to know, what's on his computer hard drive," Thompson said.
More here.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Yale Cops Subject to State FOI, Commission Says
If Yale police can make arrests and testify in court — invoking the same powers as a regular police agency — they should also be subject to open records laws, the head of the state Freedom of Information Commission ruled this week.
Yale University has long kept crime reports and other records held by its police department secret, claiming that its private police force is exempt from public oversight.
Janet Perrotti, a New Haven public defender, challenged that policy after two Yale cops arrested her client, a black teenager, for riding his bike on a city sidewalk this past spring.
More here.
Yale University has long kept crime reports and other records held by its police department secret, claiming that its private police force is exempt from public oversight.
Janet Perrotti, a New Haven public defender, challenged that policy after two Yale cops arrested her client, a black teenager, for riding his bike on a city sidewalk this past spring.
More here.
Illinois Ombuds: Open Those Warrants!
Search warrants are public records, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan says.
In a written opinion issued Monday, Madigan said the state Freedom of Information Act, which contains dozens of reasons why government information can be kept secret, does not apply to court records.
In a written opinion issued Monday, Madigan said the state Freedom of Information Act, which contains dozens of reasons why government information can be kept secret, does not apply to court records.
Rather, she said, the records are open under the Clerk of Courts Act, which says virtually all court documents are public.
“There is no statutory or other authority for a circuit clerk to unilaterally seal or impound files containing complaints for search warrants, associated affidavits, and the search warrants themselves,” Madigan wrote.
More here.Thursday, December 27, 2007
Washington Supremes Reaffirm Attorney-Client Exemption
A sharply divided state Supreme Court reaffirmed attorney-client privilege exemptions from the state's Public Records Act, and said government agencies can challenge records requests in court before releasing any information.
In a 5-4 ruling published Thursday, the high court said documents relating to a child's peanut-allergy death while on a school field trip could be withheld from The Spokesman-Review newspaper of Spokane because of exemptions for attorney-client privilege and attorney work product.
"We conclude that the vast majority of the documents at issue here are protected from disclosure because they are handwritten notes or memoranda about witness interviews created by the legal team, making them protected work product," Justice Bobbe Bridge wrote.
The ruling also found that state or local government agencies can seek a judgment in superior court over whether a particular record is subject to disclosure.
"It's not a good day for public records in the state of Washington," said Duane Swinton, the attorney who represented the newspaper in the case.
The newspaper sought witness accounts of events leading to the death of Nathan Walters, a Logan Elementary third-grader who died on a school field trip in 2001.
More here.
Monday, December 24, 2007
A New E-Mail Flap, This Time in Cali
The issue seems innocuous on its outside.
Tracy Vice Mayor Suzanne Tucker from her home computer sent e-mails regarding a public forum to officials at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, who were jockeying to build a federal infectious-disease research facility near Tracy.
In the end, the Tracy City Council voted to oppose the lab's bid, which the lab later lost to other candidates.
But one issue remains unsettled, one some say could have profound implications on the workings of government and public access: When does a public official become a private person?
Attorneys for the Tracy Press, who lost a legal battle for those e-mails earlier this year in San Joaquin County Superior Court, continue to seek an answer to that question.
Their case is now in the hands of the California Third District Court of Appeal, which could rule any day.
The implications go beyond media access, said Cheri Matthews, editor of the Tracy Press.
"This is a huge issue. It is more than a newspaper issue - it is a public issue," she said.
In e-mails to lab officials last year, Tucker sought to rework the framework of a subcommittee's hearing on the research facility, which she assumed would easily be dominated by opponents.
The city maintains Tucker acted as a private citizen when she sent those e-mails, and denied the newspaper access to them.
A loss in the court of appeal could greatly increase the chances public officials will influence or manipulate government affairs and hide it from the public, said Mark Connolly, attorney for the Tracy Press.
More here.
ACLU Tennessee Seeks Info on Dress Codes
The American Civil Liberties Union of Middle Tennessee (ACLU-TN) should soon receive the information it has requested to monitor Metro Nashville Public Schools’ standard school attire policy, according to an attorney with the Metro legal department.
The information request was received by Metro Nashville Public Schools Oct. 15, and ACLU-TN requested a response within 30 days.
Starting this school year, all Metro students are required to wear “standard school attire” — a dress code that includes navy blue, black or khaki slacks, shorts or skirts and white or navy blue shirts with short or long sleeves and a collar. Each school may also select up to four additional colors for shirts.
Students have the right to opt out of standard school attire for medical or religious reasons, and ACLU-TN is working to monitor how the district processes those opt-out requests.
On Oct. 12, ACLU-TN submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to Director of Schools Pedro Garcia about attempts to secure exemptions from the standard school attire (SSA) policy. ACLU-TN asked to receive the information within 30 days of the request and followed up several times by phone, Weinberg said, but received no response until last week.
More here.
The information request was received by Metro Nashville Public Schools Oct. 15, and ACLU-TN requested a response within 30 days.
Starting this school year, all Metro students are required to wear “standard school attire” — a dress code that includes navy blue, black or khaki slacks, shorts or skirts and white or navy blue shirts with short or long sleeves and a collar. Each school may also select up to four additional colors for shirts.
Students have the right to opt out of standard school attire for medical or religious reasons, and ACLU-TN is working to monitor how the district processes those opt-out requests.
On Oct. 12, ACLU-TN submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to Director of Schools Pedro Garcia about attempts to secure exemptions from the standard school attire (SSA) policy. ACLU-TN asked to receive the information within 30 days of the request and followed up several times by phone, Weinberg said, but received no response until last week.
More here.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
The Sheriff Gets Fined for FOI violations...
A heartwarming tale for the holidays, in which the lawman runs afoul of the Sunshine Law...you do the crime, you pay the fine.
Madison County (Va.) Sheriff Erik J. Weaver must pay a $250 fine and the plaintiff’s court fees for willfully violating the state’s Freedom of Information Act, a judge ruled Tuesday in Madison County General District Court.
Experts are calling it a potentially precedent-setting case regarding how public officials are punished for failing to comply with open records requests.
Leigh Purdum, a former office employee under Weaver, brought suit when the sheriff refused to identify the people he had appointed to a newly formed citizens advisory board.
Purdum also sought other information about the board, including its meeting dates, the criteria for choosing members, topics of discussion, goals and objectives, and copies of previous minutes.
After Tuesday’s ruling from Judge Robert H. Downer Jr., specially appointed from Albemarle County, Weaver produced the names of the 13 board members.
Maria J.K. Everett, executive director of the state-run Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council, believes this is the first time a judge in district court has ruled an elected official willfully violated Virginia FOIA laws.
Everett, who has served in her position since the office was created in July 2000, called the ruling “pretty significant.”
Jennifer Perkins, executive director of the Warrenton-based Virginia Coalition for Open Government, said it’s “a huge step in the right direction.” She said similar cases have always resulted in no monetary punishment.
“It’s a statement,” Perkins said. “The thing we’ve been really frustrated with is (judges’) reluctance to find willful violations when it’s clear to everyone else. … What’s great in this case is that you actually got the punishment.”
More here.
The FBI, Arguing With Itself
It's somewhat heartening to know that there were pretty heated discussions going on between FBI types over whether a court order was needed here...but then again, it's deeply troubling that this needs an argument. Check out the original story here, complete with PDF links to the original FBI e-mails.
By now it's well known that FBI agents can't always be troubled to get a court order before going after a surveillance target's telephone and internet records. But newly released FBI documents show that aggressive surveillance tactics have even caused friction within the bureau.
By now it's well known that FBI agents can't always be troubled to get a court order before going after a surveillance target's telephone and internet records. But newly released FBI documents show that aggressive surveillance tactics have even caused friction within the bureau.
"We deal mostly with the fugitive squad here, and, like in many other offices, these guys have a reputation for cutting corners," a surveillance specialist at the FBI's Minneapolis field office complained in an internal e-mail last year. "I'm not bashing them; it's the way they do business. Getting a court order is the absolute last step, if they have to.
"Before I had a blowup with a particular agent ... we were constantly asked to call our contacts at service providers to see if we could get various information without having to get a court order," the message continues. "This gets old, believe me. ... Doing this once or twice to help out turns into SOP (standard operating procedure) ... It's expected, and you're criticized as a tech agent if you refuse to do this later on."
The revelation is the second this year showing that FBI employees bypassed court order requirements for phone records. In July, the FBI and the Justice Department Inspector General revealed the existence of a joint investigation into an FBI counter-terrorism office, after an audit found that the Communications Analysis Unit sent more than 700 fake emergency letters to phone companies seeking call records. An Inspector General spokeswoman declined to provide the status of that investigation, citing agency policy...
Videotaping a Public Meeting: Yea or Nea?
A Vienna, Virginia, resident may pursue legal action against Fairfax County Public Schools after being told he had to turn off his video camera or leave Westfield High School during a meeting on the western county high school boundary study Dec. 3.
Bruce Bennett had started to record one of 50 small group discussions taking place in classrooms at the event when a police officer summoned him to the hall and asked him to put his video camera away.
When Bennett refused to stop filming, school officials and police officers escorted him to the entrance and asked him to leave the building, he said.
"They publicly humiliated me when they removed me from [the] room especially in light of the fact that I was just doing what I have a right to do," said Bennett, whose neighborhood would be affected under some redistricting proposals...
Bennett he intends to try and film the third boundary study meeting Dec. 18. He was able to film the first boundary meeting on Nov. 26 in its entirety, he said.
If he informs the school system ahead of time, officials would be happy to find Bennett a room with people who are not uncomfortable around the camera, said Regnier.
It can often be a better tactical move to give officials a heads up when you will want to record or videotape a meeting, said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
More here.
Bruce Bennett had started to record one of 50 small group discussions taking place in classrooms at the event when a police officer summoned him to the hall and asked him to put his video camera away.
When Bennett refused to stop filming, school officials and police officers escorted him to the entrance and asked him to leave the building, he said.
"They publicly humiliated me when they removed me from [the] room especially in light of the fact that I was just doing what I have a right to do," said Bennett, whose neighborhood would be affected under some redistricting proposals...
Bennett he intends to try and film the third boundary study meeting Dec. 18. He was able to film the first boundary meeting on Nov. 26 in its entirety, he said.
If he informs the school system ahead of time, officials would be happy to find Bennett a room with people who are not uncomfortable around the camera, said Regnier.
It can often be a better tactical move to give officials a heads up when you will want to record or videotape a meeting, said Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
More here.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Editor First Winner of GA Coalition's FOI Award
Veteran Ledger-Enquirer reporter and editor Jim Houston is one of two recipients of the Charles L. Weltner Freedom of Information Award for 2007, the Georgia First Amendment Foundation announced Tuesday.
Houston, who retired from the newspaper in August, was lauded for his commitment to open records, use of open records laws during his reporting and mentoring of young reporters about the Freedom of Information Act. Robert Rothman, banquet chairman, called recipients Houston and former Georgia Attorney General Michael Bowers champions of the public's right to know.
"It's the highest honor I could get," Houston said. "I had no concept I would win that award."
Houston's name was launched onto the state stage three years into his career in the 1970s, when he attempted to gain records from Muscogee County Jail. The records were denied, and the newspaper appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court, which ruled that public records are "all documents, papers and records prepared and maintained in the course of the operation of a public office." The definition is still used today.
The sheriff was ordered to hand over the documents, though the city attorney claimed he had lost them. The newspaper never received the information.
More here.Congress Passes FOIA Reforms...NFOIC Celebrates
Yesterday's HUGE vote was a watershed event for the FOI community in the United States -- my thanks to all of you who wrote and called and spurred your members into action!
Our release:
The passage of important bipartisan reforms to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is a victory for citizens seeking access to information about their government. The National Freedom of Information Coalition – comprised of representatives of 48 state and regional freedom of information groups – applauds work of all who worked to make these critical reforms a reality.
The NFOIC joined dozens of non-profits to spearhead the reform, and its member FOI coalitions played a vital role, working at the grass-roots level across the country to advocate for changes to the federal Freedom of Information Act.
“This is a victory for the American people, and a welcome example of bipartisan compromise that reconciled differences between the House and Senate bills,” said Charles N. Davis, executive director of the National Freedom of Information Coalition and an associate professor at the University of Missouri School of Journalism. “It’s important for us all to remember whom the federal Freedom of Information Act, and indeed all open government laws, were created for.”
If signed by President Bush, The new OPEN Government Act would:
• Penalize agencies, for the first time, if they missed the 20-day statutory deadline for responding to a FOIA request. The penalty for delays would be a waiver of the processing fee.
• Create an Ombudsman to assist FOIA requestors and provide an alternative to costly and lengthy litigation.
• Clarify that FOIA applies to government records held by outside private contractors;
• Establish a FOIA hotline service for all federal agencies and electronic tracking of all requests.
• Reestablish the right of requesters to recover legal fees if they file suit and “substantially prevail,” without the case going to final court judgment.
• Improve the reporting requirements to create greater performance accountability.
“This bipartisan legislation is an early Christmas present for the citizenry, as it would greatly speed up the process that thousands of taxpaying Americans have invested in and use daily,” Davis said.
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA), Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) led the effort to pass this legislation. Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) also played a key role in getting this legislation over the finish line.
NFOIC members contacted several key players in the reform movement and provided sign-on letters for coalition members to join. The national headquarters worked with an array of non-profit advocacy groups on the issue and wrote repeatedly to leaders in Congress, calling for change.
“The people spoke, and this time Congress listened,” Davis said. “Freedom of information is an elemental component of a representative democracy, enabling citizens to serve as civic watchdogs.”
The National Freedom of Information, headquartered at the University of Missouri, is funded through a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
Established in 1950, the John S. and James L. Knight foundation makes national grants in journalism, education and arts and culture. Its fourth program, community initiatives, is concentrated in 26 communities where the Knight brothers published newspapers, but the foundation is wholly separate from and independent of those newspapers.
Our release:
The passage of important bipartisan reforms to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is a victory for citizens seeking access to information about their government. The National Freedom of Information Coalition – comprised of representatives of 48 state and regional freedom of information groups – applauds work of all who worked to make these critical reforms a reality.
The NFOIC joined dozens of non-profits to spearhead the reform, and its member FOI coalitions played a vital role, working at the grass-roots level across the country to advocate for changes to the federal Freedom of Information Act.
“This is a victory for the American people, and a welcome example of bipartisan compromise that reconciled differences between the House and Senate bills,” said Charles N. Davis, executive director of the National Freedom of Information Coalition and an associate professor at the University of Missouri School of Journalism. “It’s important for us all to remember whom the federal Freedom of Information Act, and indeed all open government laws, were created for.”
If signed by President Bush, The new OPEN Government Act would:
• Penalize agencies, for the first time, if they missed the 20-day statutory deadline for responding to a FOIA request. The penalty for delays would be a waiver of the processing fee.
• Create an Ombudsman to assist FOIA requestors and provide an alternative to costly and lengthy litigation.
• Clarify that FOIA applies to government records held by outside private contractors;
• Establish a FOIA hotline service for all federal agencies and electronic tracking of all requests.
• Reestablish the right of requesters to recover legal fees if they file suit and “substantially prevail,” without the case going to final court judgment.
• Improve the reporting requirements to create greater performance accountability.
“This bipartisan legislation is an early Christmas present for the citizenry, as it would greatly speed up the process that thousands of taxpaying Americans have invested in and use daily,” Davis said.
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Henry Waxman (D-CA), Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA), Rep. William Lacy Clay (D-MO), Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) and Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) led the effort to pass this legislation. Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) also played a key role in getting this legislation over the finish line.
NFOIC members contacted several key players in the reform movement and provided sign-on letters for coalition members to join. The national headquarters worked with an array of non-profit advocacy groups on the issue and wrote repeatedly to leaders in Congress, calling for change.
“The people spoke, and this time Congress listened,” Davis said. “Freedom of information is an elemental component of a representative democracy, enabling citizens to serve as civic watchdogs.”
The National Freedom of Information, headquartered at the University of Missouri, is funded through a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
Established in 1950, the John S. and James L. Knight foundation makes national grants in journalism, education and arts and culture. Its fourth program, community initiatives, is concentrated in 26 communities where the Knight brothers published newspapers, but the foundation is wholly separate from and independent of those newspapers.
Hillary Sits On Records...
The National Archives is withholding from the public about 2,600 pages of records at President Clinton's direction, despite a public assurance by one of his top aides last month that Mr. Clinton "has not blocked the release of a single document."
The 2,600 pages, stored at Mr. Clinton's library in Arkansas, were deemed to contain "confidential advice" and, therefore, "closed" under the Presidential Records Act, an Archives spokeswoman, Susan Cooper, told The New York Sun yesterday.
An official who oversees the presidential libraries operated by the federal government, Sharon Fawcett, said in a recent interview that the records were withheld in accordance with a letter Mr. Clinton wrote in 1994 exercising his right to hold back certain types of files and another letter in 2002 about narrowing the scope of his earlier instructions. Asked by National Journal whether Mr. Clinton had "total control" over the closure of records under the confidential-advice provisions of the law, Ms. Fawcett said he did.
More here.
Hillary Sits On Records...
The National Archives is withholding from the public about 2,600 pages of records at President Clinton's direction, despite a public assurance by one of his top aides last month that Mr. Clinton "has not blocked the release of a single document."
The 2,600 pages, stored at Mr. Clinton's library in Arkansas, were deemed to contain "confidential advice" and, therefore, "closed" under the Presidential Records Act, an Archives spokeswoman, Susan Cooper, told The New York Sun yesterday.
An official who oversees the presidential libraries operated by the federal government, Sharon Fawcett, said in a recent interview that the records were withheld in accordance with a letter Mr. Clinton wrote in 1994 exercising his right to hold back certain types of files and another letter in 2002 about narrowing the scope of his earlier instructions. Asked by National Journal whether Mr. Clinton had "total control" over the closure of records under the confidential-advice provisions of the law, Ms. Fawcett said he did.
More here.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Florida Papers Get Attorneys' Fees in FEMA FOIA Flap
The federal government has agreed to pay $105,000 in attorney fees for The News-Press after the newspaper successfully sued the Department of Homeland Security for the release of public records.
The News-Press and its sister Gannett Co. Inc. newspapers, The Pensacola News Journal and Florida Today, sued the agency when it refused to release details on the 1.1 million recipients of $1.2 billion in disaster aid after four hurricanes ripped through Florida in 2004.
The money was distributed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, a branch of Homeland Security. FEMA refused to detail who received the aid after the newspapers requested that data under the Freedom of Information Act.
The newspapers initially failed in the attempt to get the information from the government, but they prevailed in The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
The government was ordered to turn over the addresses of recipients of disaster aid.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, winning a release of the records allowed the plaintiffs to return to court to request attorneys' fees from the government agency.
"It is gratifying that the government finally recognizes some degree of culpability in this case," said The News-Press Executive Editor Kate Marymont. "We view this as further evidence that we did the correct thing — fight for the public's right to know."
The law firm representing the papers, Holland & Knight, had requested $165,000 in attorney fees but the motions were pending while they tried to work out a deal with the government.
More here.
Visitor Logs Subject to FOIA, Judge Says
Well, look to get your hands on these about Nov. 3, 2008...
A federal judge on Monday rejected a Bush administration argument for shielding records of White House visits by prominent religious conservatives.
U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth ruled that visitor logs from the White House and Vice President Dick Cheney’s residence are subject to Freedom of Information Act requests. The Secret Service creates the records and is subject to Freedom of Information Act requests.
The Bush administration, however, had ordered that the logs be turned over to the White House and treated as presidential records, which would protect them from public-records law.
In a lawsuit brought by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), a liberal watchdog group, Lamberth ordered the Secret Service to turn over visitor logs regarding nine conservative religious commentators, including James Dobson, Gary Bauer and Jerry Falwell, according to an Associated Press report.
Lamberth said he did not have the authority to rule on a second CREW lawsuit seeking to render illegal the White House’s destruction of log records provided by the Secret Service. That lawsuit involved logs of White House visits by disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
More here.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
FOI At Work: A Great Series on a Shameful Secret...
Every year, Arizona teachers lose their jobs because they molest their students, say sexually inappropriate things, even sleep with them in some cases. But schools, protected by state law, routinely keep these incidents secret. And educators move on to other jobs with little consequence.
The East Valley Tribune takes a long look at the issue, thanks to a BUNCH of FOI requests. Be sure to check out the great searchable database of public records here.
The East Valley Tribune takes a long look at the issue, thanks to a BUNCH of FOI requests. Be sure to check out the great searchable database of public records here.
Tennessee Reform Update
The Commercial Appeal brings us up to date on how Tennessee's FOI reform efforts are shaping up:
Tennessee's Public Records law was enacted in 1957, declaring that "all state, county and municipal records shall at all times during business hours be open for personal inspection by any citizen of Tennessee."
Tennessee's Public Records law was enacted in 1957, declaring that "all state, county and municipal records shall at all times during business hours be open for personal inspection by any citizen of Tennessee."
Seventeen years later, lawmakers adopted its companion Open Meetings Act, which says: "All meetings of any governing body are declared to be public meetings open to the public at all times, except as provided by the Constitution of Tennessee."
In theory, the two laws work in tandem to give Tennesseans broad access to state and local government.
The reality has been less than the ideal. About 230 exemptions have been amended into the Public Records Act, including many -- medical records, Social Security numbers and student records -- that most people favor.
A "Right to Know Audit" in 2004 by the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government sent volunteers into government offices in all 95 counties asking to see some benign public document that citizens have a legal right to inspect -- items such as the minutes of planning commission meetings, where officials decide what can be built on the vacant lot next door.
On average, the coalition volunteers were denied that right about one-third of the time.
In October, a Knoxville jury of 12 citizens ruled that their county commission violated the Open Meetings Act when members met privately in small groups to select appointees to 12 top offices, including the sheriff, county clerk, trustee, register of deeds and eight commission seats. The decisions were later rubber-stamped in public.
The Knox County case raised concerns among local government officials statewide when the judge threatened commissioners with contempt of court if they violated the law again. It brought to a head three decades of frustration with the so-called "Sunshine Law" among many local officials.
Coincidentally, a separate effort by media and open-government advocates to update the two laws for an era of electronic data-keeping and communications gave the associations that represent city and county governments, school boards, public hospitals, public utilities and others an opening to seek modifications in the Open Meetings Act. The legislature created a special committee to study issues and propose remedies. In its hearings this fall, both sides pressed their cases...
Friday, December 14, 2007
HUGE FOIA News...
This just in...
Reversing a trend toward secrecy, federal agencies would have to be more responsive to Freedom of Information Act requests under legislation approved by the Senate Friday.
Reversing a trend toward secrecy, federal agencies would have to be more responsive to Freedom of Information Act requests under legislation approved by the Senate Friday.
The bill, approved by voice vote, commits the government to be more open, shifting policies that since the Sept. 11 attacks have emphasized security in responding to requests for information.
The measure makes minor revisions to previously passed legislation to meet House concerns. The House could take it up next week, before adjourning for the year.
The bill would give the 40-year-old act its first makeover in a decade, streamlining a process plagued by long delays and bureaucratic obstacles. It is supported by dozens of media outlets, including The Associated Press.
It restores a presumption of disclosure standard that would commit agencies to releasing requested information unless there is a finding that such disclosure could do harm.
After Sept. 11, then Attorney General John Ashcroft instructed agencies against releasing information when there was any uncertainty over security or law enforcement exemptions.
The "Open Government Act" will "help to reverse the troubling trends of excessive delays and lax FOIA compliance in our government and help to restore the public's trust in their government," said Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who sponsored the bill with Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.
Cornyn tried in previous years to push a similar bill he authored through the Senate. When he was stat attorney general, Cornyn was responsible for enforcing open government laws.
"It's encouraging to see us so close to enacting sweeping reforms that will let more sunshine in government and increase the people's right to know," Cornyn said.
Leahy has been working with the Justice Department on the legislation and the administration is expected to support it.
It would take steps to ensure that agencies abide by the 20-day deadline for responding to FOIA requests, including a requirement that FOIA offices get requests for information to the appropriate agency office within 10 days of receiving the request.
Agencies that fail to meet the 20-day deadline would have to refund search and duplication fees for noncommercial requesters.
The legislation creates a tracking system for FOIA requests to help members of the public and the media and establishes a FOIA hotline service for all federal agencies to deal with problems.
FOIA would be applied to government records held by private contractors and a FOIA ombudsman would be established to provide an alternative to litigation over disclosure disputes.
More here. And here.Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Gov's Mansion in Tennessee Draws Ire
A Nashville-based taxpayer group took aim at the governor's residence underground expansion plans.
Tennesseans for Accountability in Government met in a large ballroom at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel.
A room, members said, is only half the size of the underground room planned for the governor's mansion.
The watchdog group claims the finances for the renovations on the mansion have been shrouded in secrecy.
TAG Vice President Susan Kaestner said the group organized the media event to raise public awareness about the proposed $19.2 million renovation and ballroom addition to the Executive Residence.
TAG members took aim at the second phase of the project. Their charge is that the project mushroomed into a large and unnecessary project underwritten by public and private money.
"We demand before the first shovel breaks the ground, the secrecy surrounding this projetc be lifted and the plans and cost be made public by the state," Kaestner said.
But state architect Mike Fitts said everything has been done under the watchful eye of the State Building Commission. He said much of the funding is from private donations.
Fitts said the project has changed somewhat since it was announced four years ago, but "that is not unusual with a project of this scale and complexity."
"The use of state funds has always been contemplated for appropriate parts of the restoration of this state property, but this has been a very public process carried out with the State Building Commission's oversight," he said.
More here.
FOI Down Under: Fewer requests, but more access
From The Australian:
In Australia, FOI requests have hit their lowest level in five years.
But more FOI applications are being approved, the latest figures show.
The annual report on freedom of information laws, released today by former Howard government attorney-general Philip Ruddock, details how well the crucial laws are achieving their aim of ensuring transparency in government.
It also shows bureaucrats are still refusing to release a great deal of information held by federal departments.
One in five requests for information during 2006-07 was knocked back at least in part, although 80 per cent of applications were granted for full release - a two per cent increase on 2005-06.
Centrelink and the departments of Immigration and Veterans' Affairs were the main recipients of FOI requests during 2006-07, mostly from people seeking details on their own cases.
A total of 38,787 FOI requests were received by all federal departments and agencies - down from 41,430 on the previous year and the lowest number since 2001-02.
Of the 34,158 rulings made during the year, 1,499 were refused outright, 5,128 were “partially granted” - and thus partially refused - and 27,531 were granted in full.
Documents granted for partial release frequently contain large sections of blacked-out material that prevent the applicant from knowing the full story.
But the number of FOI applications refused outright fell from six per cent in 2005-06 to 4.4 per cent in the last financial year.
In Australia, FOI requests have hit their lowest level in five years.
But more FOI applications are being approved, the latest figures show.
The annual report on freedom of information laws, released today by former Howard government attorney-general Philip Ruddock, details how well the crucial laws are achieving their aim of ensuring transparency in government.
It also shows bureaucrats are still refusing to release a great deal of information held by federal departments.
One in five requests for information during 2006-07 was knocked back at least in part, although 80 per cent of applications were granted for full release - a two per cent increase on 2005-06.
Centrelink and the departments of Immigration and Veterans' Affairs were the main recipients of FOI requests during 2006-07, mostly from people seeking details on their own cases.
A total of 38,787 FOI requests were received by all federal departments and agencies - down from 41,430 on the previous year and the lowest number since 2001-02.
Of the 34,158 rulings made during the year, 1,499 were refused outright, 5,128 were “partially granted” - and thus partially refused - and 27,531 were granted in full.
Documents granted for partial release frequently contain large sections of blacked-out material that prevent the applicant from knowing the full story.
But the number of FOI applications refused outright fell from six per cent in 2005-06 to 4.4 per cent in the last financial year.
The Single Best Use of FOIA I Have Seen This Holiday Season
Every once in a while, there comes an act of such singular genius that you must simply step aside and let it tell itself...courtesy of the Dallas Morning News:
Who's been naughty and is likely to end up with a stocking full of coal?
It might just be Santa Claus or Kris Kringle.
Public records show that nationally, someone named Santa Claus has been convicted at least a dozen times during the past decade.
Mr. Claus' indiscretions include a 1996 arrest for driving while intoxicated in Jefferson County, Texas.
And Mr. Kringle has a lengthy criminal record in Oregon.
Even the Christmas crew appears to have had some troubles: Rudolph Reindeer violated a restraining order in 2004.
But don't plug the chimney and forgo the cookies and milk just yet.
Skilled backgrounders know that you can't just put someone on the naughty list based on a name. Many people have the same name, but other information would distinguish them – such as their date of birth or home address.
Unless Santa has a summer home in Beaumont, it's unlikely the Texas drunken driver with the same name is the Santa Claus. None had an address at the actual North Pole, according to public records. But several residents of North Pole, Alaska, have criminal records.
And yes, in Virginia there is a Santa Claus. In fact, there are at least four – two of whom are women. But no public records showed criminal records for those Clauses.
Birth dates also can distinguish individuals in background checks. All of the Clauses and Kringles with criminal records were born in the 1900s. It has been published widely that the Santa Claus was around before that.
While this topic may seem like a frivolous excuse for a writer to combine public records and the holiday season, it's not all fun and games.
Backgrounding Santa is not unusual. Companies frequently run background checks on the individuals they hire to stand in for the famous North Pole gift-giver, particularly in cases where they interact with children.
Police in some areas of England this year asked organizations that employ "Father Christmas, elves and other festive characters" to run background checks, according to British news reports.
The same techniques I used to check on Mr. Claus can be used to check up on other people in your life.
Several online sites claim they can background someone for a fee, but many of those services are pricey. Government databases often are less expensive.
The Texas Department of Public Safety Web site provides access to a database of criminal conviction records. For a fee, you can search by a person's name.
If your search turns up no records, you're not necessarily in the clear; the records are incomplete because the agency relies on whatever information the counties provide. According to DPS, for example, Dallas County reported 78 percent of its 2004 criminal conviction records to the state, which is a marked improvement from just a few years ago. Denton County did better by reporting 82 percent of its records.
Salt Lake Trib Wins A Lawsuit Over Records It Should Have Been Handed The Day It Asked For Them...
Isn't it maddening that a fine FOI newspaper like the Salt Lake Tribune has to waste its litigation bullets on stuff that it should simply be handed that day of teh request? Madness!
More here.
Overtime and bonuses for city employees are fair game for public inspection, according to a court decision in a lawsuit between Sandy City and The Salt Lake Tribune.
The Tribune in 2004 requested records containing the names, positions, genders, pay and benefits for Sandy City police officers and fire department employees. The city refused to release certain details, claiming that an individual's bonus and overtime records are private information and not subject to the state Government Records Access and Management Act, which lists a public employee's "gross compensation" as a public record.
Sandy City offered to provide one figure reflecting the sum of overtime, bonus and regular pay for each employee, but Tribune reporters had requested a breakdown of total pay.
"Every other city they asked gave them that information," said Michael Patrick O'Brien, attorney for The Tribune.
The State Records Committee in 2005 upheld the Tribune's request, but Sandy City appealed the decision to the 3rd District Court.
In an opinion filed Friday, Judge Robert P. Faust rejected Sandy City attorneys' definition of "gross compensation" as a total sum that does not segregate overtime and bonuses from regular pay - a definition they supported with Webster's Dictionary, Faust wrote.
More here.
Google, Wikipedia: Government records hard to find!
The Washington Post drops in on the pubic records/search engine issue:
These days you can Google just about anything, from your favorite celebrity's pet to your boss's middle name. But using the biggest search engine to get information about the government often falls short.
That's what leaders from Google and Wikipedia plan to tell the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs today, urging Congress to require federal agencies to make their Web sites, records and databases more searchable...
Four out of five Web surfers use search engines to find information, usually bypassing a site's home page unless the page appears in the search results, said John Lewis Needham, manager of public-sector content partnerships for Google.
Needham has spent the past 18 months working with agencies to make their online presence more Googlable. The Internet giant is also working with states to let people search databases to find, for example, licensing records, consumer complaints and financial transactions. Virginia and the District have partnered with Google.
The biggest hurdle agencies face in sharing information with one another and with citizens is not the technology but rather how the agencies organize information, said Karen Evans, who oversees the e-government program for the Office of Management and Budget. OMB also must protect the privacy of people listed in the hundreds of millions of records on file, she said.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Suit In Illinois Seeks Access to Investgatory Records
An age-old tactic: close the investigation, then magically re-open it when someone asks for the records...
The Illinois State Police should release records of its investigations into claims that political interference undermined state probes of two pharmacies, the Chicago Tribune said in a lawsuit filed Monday.
State police officials said in October that the investigations were closed without prosecution, which means the files should be publicly available under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, the newspaper contends.
But in November -- after the Tribune asked for the files -- state police officials announced the investigations had been reopened and they refused to turn over the records, according to the suit filed in Sangamon County Circuit Court.
More here.
The Illinois State Police should release records of its investigations into claims that political interference undermined state probes of two pharmacies, the Chicago Tribune said in a lawsuit filed Monday.
State police officials said in October that the investigations were closed without prosecution, which means the files should be publicly available under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act, the newspaper contends.
But in November -- after the Tribune asked for the files -- state police officials announced the investigations had been reopened and they refused to turn over the records, according to the suit filed in Sangamon County Circuit Court.
More here.
FOI At Work: State Senator Guides Grant, Gets Paid...
A nice, nice piece of FOI-driven work in Alabama, that spins a motley tale...
State Sen. E.B. McClain received about $4,000 a month for several years from a nonprofit program after he helped persuade Alabama's two-year college system to fund it, records show.
The college system paid Heritage to Hope, a Birmingham nonprofit, more than $310,000 from February 2004 through September 2006 to operate a computer-based tutoring program that helped 13 people complete at least one level of training, according to system records. The program, canceled last year, was supposed to recruit high-school dropouts for training that would help them acquire a GED, a high-school equivalency certificate.
McClain, a Birmingham Democrat, was paid as a consultant by the program after helping it receive the two-year college funding, said the Rev. Sam Pettagrue, the retired pastor of Sardis Baptist Church and creator of the nonprofit.
Read more here.
As the Keystone State Turns...
The state House unanimously adopted a comprehensive amendment to an open records bill that would presume the records of all branches of state and local governments are public, as it passed a number of amendments to the bill Monday night. House members confidently predicted their failure to pass the bill last week would not bar the bill from being sent to Gov. Ed Rendell before the end of the year.
But about three hours after that vote was taken, Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, put out a statement in which he said: "The House adopted 19 separate amendments to Senate Bill 1 . Under House rules, the earliest that the bill can be sent to the Senate is late Tuesday night.
"The Senate approved this legislation, 48 to 1, on November 28. It is unfortunate that the leadership of the House of Representatives chose to delay substantive action for 12 days.
"The public and the Senate need to fully understand the impact of the many House amendments. We will begin studying them immediately. Strengthening Pennsylvania's Open Records Law remains my top legislative priority. As such, the Senate will act on Senate Bill 1 as soon as we return in January."
A vote on final passage of the House measure could come Tuesday night after 9 p.m., unless the House votes to suspend its rules and votes earlier.
The omnibus amendment changed a Senate bill that expanded access to state and local government records, but limited the number of legislative and judicial records available to the public, mostly to financial records.
But about three hours after that vote was taken, Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, put out a statement in which he said: "The House adopted 19 separate amendments to Senate Bill 1 . Under House rules, the earliest that the bill can be sent to the Senate is late Tuesday night.
"The Senate approved this legislation, 48 to 1, on November 28. It is unfortunate that the leadership of the House of Representatives chose to delay substantive action for 12 days.
"The public and the Senate need to fully understand the impact of the many House amendments. We will begin studying them immediately. Strengthening Pennsylvania's Open Records Law remains my top legislative priority. As such, the Senate will act on Senate Bill 1 as soon as we return in January."
A vote on final passage of the House measure could come Tuesday night after 9 p.m., unless the House votes to suspend its rules and votes earlier.
The omnibus amendment changed a Senate bill that expanded access to state and local government records, but limited the number of legislative and judicial records available to the public, mostly to financial records.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Another turn in the PA saga....
The fits-and-starts process of overhauling Pennsylvania's open records law took a step forward Monday as the House of Representatives made a host of mostly minor revisions to a version previously approved by the state Senate. The main amendment, a measure sponsored by Rep. Tim Mahoney, D-Fayette, would provide greater access to records of the Legislature but prevented disclosure of birth dates and phone numbers in public records. The grueling hours of votes on Monday laid the groundwork for a final vote in the House, which could come as early as Tuesday. A House-Senate conference committee may be necessary to negotiate a compromise version before the measure can gain final approval by each body and be sent to Gov. Ed Rendell.
Read more here.
Read more here.
Friday, December 07, 2007
GREAT New NY Govt Data Site
From the Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin:
Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's office launched a Web site Wednesday that aims to shed some light on government at work in Albany. Dubbed Project Sunlight, it offers citizens access to data on campaign financing, lobbying, agency contracts, member items, legislation, as well as profit and not-for-profit corporations registered in New York. It's a broad offering of important information conveniently linked on one site.
For example, if you were searching data connected to a bill, here you can find out its number, name of its sponsor, a summary and who lobbied for it. The information available on your elected representative includes contact information including his/her Web site, counties served, sponsored legislation, campaign contributions, member items and contracts.
Information on member items can also be accessed by clicking on your county within a map of New York. A window pops up telling how many member items have been awarded this year. This format is great, because with a gentle scroll across the screen, you can see where the majority of tax dollars tapped for member items are showing up. Quite informative, indeed...
Check it out here.
Thursday, December 06, 2007
PA closer to a real FOI law...
The Pennsylvania statehouse could be the scene of real FOI reform...or not. It seems too close to call from here, so I'll take you to the coverage, here. And here. The good news? They're working on it hard. The bad news? When the House started debating the legislation Wednesday, 40 new amendments had been introduced to muddy the message.
After several weeks of maneuvering, there is now only one major difference between the two competing bills. The House bill includes language that asserts that all legislative and executive records, plus financial records for the judicial branch, should be presumed to be open. That means the impetus would be placed on the government to keep records closed, as opposed to the current system in which the public must often fight to see public records.
This would be a major, major improvement, in its current form. But watch those amendments...
After several weeks of maneuvering, there is now only one major difference between the two competing bills. The House bill includes language that asserts that all legislative and executive records, plus financial records for the judicial branch, should be presumed to be open. That means the impetus would be placed on the government to keep records closed, as opposed to the current system in which the public must often fight to see public records.
This would be a major, major improvement, in its current form. But watch those amendments...
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
A Compromise on Concealed Weapon Permits in VA...?
The state police would withhold information about Virginians with permits to carry concealed handguns and allow no exceptions for political organizations and firearms advocates under legislation endorsed Monday by a state advisory council.
The draft legislation would prohibit the state police from releasing its database containing the identities of state residents with concealed-carry permits. The information had been considered a public record until March, when a Roanoke Times editorial writer wrote a column encouraging readers to check the list and included a link to the database. The newspaper obtained the database under the Freedom of Information Act.
Publication of the list triggered outrage from gun owners and advocates. The newspaper removed the database after receiving hundreds of complaints.
In response to the complaints, lawmakers vowed to take steps to restrict access to the information. The state police stopped distributing the information in April on the advice of Attorney General Bob McDonnell. Draft legislation endorsed Monday by the state Freedom of Information Advisory Council would make the ban permanent.
More here.Great work from a smaller market...
For all of those out there who think building FOI-driven databases is too hard and too expensive and too time-consuming, take a look at the Bristol, Virginia, Herald Courier's newest online venture...
See the whole series -- and access the database -- here.
Gathering local government salaries from across Southwest Virginia and Northeast Tennessee was not only an arduous exercise of fiscal oversight for this newspaper, but also showed that localities routinely fail to follow open records laws.The Bristol Herald Courier set out more than a year ago to collect salary data from what ended up being 65 local jurisdictions funded by taxpayers.
Every town, city, county and school system in an 11-county, two-state region – an area with a collective land mass larger than the entire state of Connecticut – was compiled for comparison purposes.
But not without a futile fight from many jurisdictions.
Johnson City never fully complied with our request under the Tennessee Public Records Act; instead of releasing first names, as the law requires, Johnson City disclosed first initials.It also took Johnson City more than four months to even release the salaries of its city employees.
“Tennessee law says records in the hands of government shall be open for inspection during business hours and cannot be withheld unless there is a specific law that makes it confidential,” said Frank Gibson, executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. “It’s assumed that means immediate release, but there is not a specific limit on how much time a custodian has to respond or to provide the information.”
An open government study committee has recommended that Tennessee implement a four-day time frame for compliance with the Public Records Act.
“Simple, small requests are to be immediate,” Gibson wrote in an e-mail. “In others the record keeper must grant the request or within 4 days cite a specific exemption in the law that allows the information to be withheld or explain why the record can’t be produced within the 4-day period.”
As Johnson City finally released the salary records, the city also tried to engage in a bit of horse trading.
See the whole series -- and access the database -- here.
It's an age-old debate: could scrutiny of cold case files help move the cases, or does it undermine investigations, even if those investigations have been dormant for years?
Lawyers tangled in the Georgia Supreme Court on Monday about a case that could force police departments to release documents in unsolved crimes, a move which authorities said would undermine their investigations.
The argument deals with the police use of the term "pending investigation" to refuse media requests for public information, a term that open records lawyers say is being abused by authorities to withhold public information.
Much more here.In Wisconsin, the Bins Runneth Dry...
Madison, Wisconsin police are promising to look into why almost all daily police reports have stopped showing up in a bin at police headquarters that news reporters have used for years to keep residents informed about crime in their city.
"This the first I've heard that it's dried up," Capt. Carl Gloede, the department's chief records custodian, said in a recent interview. "I'll have to see who's doing the sorting now and pick their brain about what they're doing."
The dearth of information comes at a time when public interest in crime is intense. Hundreds of residents attended a series of meetings with police this fall to complain about crime and disorder in their neighborhoods...
The change started in late August, when fewer and fewer reports of assaults, thefts, burglaries and other incidents began showing up. The trend increased throughout the fall, with only a few reports of stolen bicycles or stacks of parking tickets put out.
Since at least October, regular checks have shown nothing in the bin other than an arrest log, which contains the minimal information police are required to provide under the law whenever a person is picked up, including the person's name, case number and tentative charge.
But the log does not describe the circumstances of an arrest, nor does it include any incident that did not involve an arrest.
More here.
Google in Florida records deal...
Florida and Google Inc. announced a partnership Monday that both say will make it easier for citizens to get access to public records through search engines. Gov. Charlie Crist said the Web site improvements will not cost the state any money, while a Google official, John Burchett, said he hoped his firm would receive increased traffic as a result.
Many records that are public are beyond the reach of Google's "crawlers," the automated seekers of online data that slam into firewalls into Florida for all kinds of reasons. Examples of records that will now be searchable include public school FCAT scores, water and waste permits, employment data and consumers' commuting patterns.
The Google deal follows Crist's creation of an Office of Open Government; a study commission on how government can become more accessible to citizens; and an executive order requiring state agencies' basic documents to be in plain language.
Florida is the sixth state to enter into a venture with Google, joining Arizona, California, Michigan, Utah and Virginia. To see how to get access to that hard-to-find information, go to http://www.google.com/publicsector.
Friday, November 30, 2007
Nominations Wanted...
Heroes of the 50 States:
The State Government Hall of Fame
There are heroes among us.
Heroes who may be well known within their respective states and communities, but whose labors have gone unrecognized elsewhere.
Heroes whose efforts have kept state and local government records and meetings open and accessible to their fellow citizens.
It is time to recognize these heroes in the same way we recognize the heroes of the federal Freedom of Information Act.
The Open Government Hall of Fame honors those whose lifetime commitment to citizen access, open government and freedom of information has left a legacy at the state and local level.
ELIGIBILITY
The Open Government Hall of Fame is open to anyone who has made a substantial, sustained and lasting contribution to open government or freedom of information within one particular state. Even if the nominee has been active in national efforts or national organizations, the judges will only consider accomplishments at the state level.
Nominees may come from government, the media, the non-profit sector, the legal profession, or any other area of endeavor that involves citizen access to government records, meetings and procedures.
Nominees may be living or dead, active or retired.
NOMINATIONS
Nominations should include the following:
• Cover letter identifying the nominee and the person or group making the nomination.
• Adequate support material to demonstrate the worthiness of the nominee.
Please send all nomination materials to:
Charles Davis, Executive Director
NFOIC Headquarters
University of Missouri
133 Neff Hall
Columbia, MO 65211
Nominations must be received by February 1, 2008.
JUDGING
All nominees will be evaluated by a screening committee of SPJ and NFOIC leaders, who will select the winners.
For questions, please contact Charles Davis at 573/882-5736 or daviscn@missouri.edu
The State Government Hall of Fame
There are heroes among us.
Heroes who may be well known within their respective states and communities, but whose labors have gone unrecognized elsewhere.
Heroes whose efforts have kept state and local government records and meetings open and accessible to their fellow citizens.
It is time to recognize these heroes in the same way we recognize the heroes of the federal Freedom of Information Act.
The Open Government Hall of Fame honors those whose lifetime commitment to citizen access, open government and freedom of information has left a legacy at the state and local level.
ELIGIBILITY
The Open Government Hall of Fame is open to anyone who has made a substantial, sustained and lasting contribution to open government or freedom of information within one particular state. Even if the nominee has been active in national efforts or national organizations, the judges will only consider accomplishments at the state level.
Nominees may come from government, the media, the non-profit sector, the legal profession, or any other area of endeavor that involves citizen access to government records, meetings and procedures.
Nominees may be living or dead, active or retired.
NOMINATIONS
Nominations should include the following:
• Cover letter identifying the nominee and the person or group making the nomination.
• Adequate support material to demonstrate the worthiness of the nominee.
Please send all nomination materials to:
Charles Davis, Executive Director
NFOIC Headquarters
University of Missouri
133 Neff Hall
Columbia, MO 65211
Nominations must be received by February 1, 2008.
JUDGING
All nominees will be evaluated by a screening committee of SPJ and NFOIC leaders, who will select the winners.
For questions, please contact Charles Davis at 573/882-5736 or daviscn@missouri.edu
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Sunshine Week 2008: People, Get Ready...
For Immediate Release: Nov. 29, 2007
Contact:
Debra Gersh Hernandez
Sunshine Week Coordinator
dghernandez@asne.org; 703-807-2100
Sunshine Week 2008 Hits the Campaign Trail:
Candidates from President to Mayor to be Quizzed on Access Issues
Actors, Scientists, Researchers Join Growing Call for Open Government
Washington, D.C. — The Sunshine Week alliance has begun a yearlong Sunshine Campaign project to bring the discussion of open government issues to election campaigns from president to local city council. While the initiative expands the scope of Sunshine Week to cover the entire election season, specific events and coverage are still planned for Sunshine Week, March 16-22, 2008.
Sunshine Week is a non-partisan open government initiative led by the American Society of Newspaper Editors, with online and broadcast media, public officials, celebrities, civic groups, non-profits, libraries, schools, religious leaders and others. It is primarily funded by a challenge grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
The Sunshine Campaign is designed to spur campaign conversation — and commitment — to open government during the presidential race and continuing on through to city council contests. Journalists, and anyone else with the opportunity, are encouraged to ask every candidate for public office to explain his or her positions on open government and Freedom of Information issues.
The replies, sent in to Sunshine Week by participants and observers, will be used to develop a database of presidential statements, positions, votes and views across a variety of open government issues as a running reference. Independent research on previous statements, votes and other available relevant FOI data also will be in the database.
During one of its initial Sunshine Campaign activities, Sunshine Week teamed with The Creative Coalition to discuss open government issues at the recent Democratic presidential candidates' debate in Las Vegas.
Among those attending a dinner co-sponsored by The Creative Coalition and Sunshine Week were Coalition co-president and actor Joe Pantoliano and actors/members Tim Daly, Kerry Washington, James Denton, Matthew Modine and Richard Schiff. Other guests included Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist; Eric Alterman, author and columnist for The Nation; and writer, producer and pundit Lawrence O'Donnell Jr.
Sunshine Week and The Creative Coalition are exploring opportunities to partner for other activities promoting government transparency during the 2008 presidential campaign.
"Open government is the very essence of our democracy. We’re proud to partner with Sunshine Week to ensure that every citizen has access to information and the ability to express their First Amendment right to free speech," said Robin Bronk, executive director of The Creative Coalition.
Sunshine Week also has sent a questionnaire on a variety of open government issues has been sent to the campaign offices of the 16 leading Democratic and Republican candidates. They have been asked to respond by mid-December. Answers will be posted on the Sunshine Week Web site as they are received.
Promotional materials featuring Sunshine Campaign "spokesmammals" Ronnie and Donnie (representing a Republican elephant and Democratic donkey) will be available to participants. Sunshine Campaign items will include print and Web ads, T-shirts and other clothing, buttons, campaign yard signs and stickers.
Resources such as suggested questions and links to additional material to help get people involved in the project are on the Sunshine Week Web site, www.sunshineweek.org.
Significant support for the Sunshine Campaign's online database of candidates' positions on open government is being provided by the National Security Archive at George Washington University. In 2007, the Archive's Mexico Project oversaw the launch of México Abierto, a media initiative modeled on Sunshine Week. Now, the candidate database is being built with the help of the project’s transparency coordinator, Emilene MartÃnez-Morales, and it will serve as a model for a similar issues database in Mexico.
"The Sunshine Campaign Website is an important tool that will keep the public informed about where candidates stand on openness before they take office, allowing voters to make an informed choice," said MartÃnez-Morales. "It is an effort that can serve as a model to monitor all kinds of campaigns, from presidential to local city council, not only in the United States but in other countries as well."
Sunshine Week also is working with Project Vote Smart, which has included questions specific to open government on its Political Courage Test, a non-partisan survey sent to every candidate regarding his or her position on a variety of issues.
Only three of the leading presidential candidates — Chris Dodd, John Edwards and Mike Gravel — have responded to the survey, despite repeated efforts by news organizations, prominent members of the Project Vote Smart board and others to compel a reply.
"This test demonstrated the obvious relationship between exploding campaign financing, candidates' ability to control their messages and the public's loss of access to information," said Project Vote Smart President Richard Kimball. Project Vote Smart has seen participation in its survey of federal candidates drop from 72 percent in 1968 to 48 percent in 2006.
Project Vote Smart also is helping to ensure openness in government by providing detailed accounts of legislation passed by Congress and all 50 state legislatures, as well as an in-depth database of public statements made by candidates and elected officials from across the nation. The information can be found online at www.votesmart.org .
"In a time where elected officials are determined to stonewall the public, hopefully it will provide comfort to the citizens of the country to know that there are people who are committed to ensuring that there is openness and honesty in government," Kimball said.
Other Sunshine Campaign efforts underway include:
-- Channel One Network will distribute 250,000 teacher guide-posters for its "1Voice" First Amendment project that includes an article about celebrating Sunshine Week 2008. The poster explains Sunshine Week and points to why open government matters to teachers and students. To further highlight the importance of open government to teens, Channel One News will produce and air a "1Voice" segment centered on this critical topic, scheduled to air in conjunction with Sunshine Week.
-- The Coalition of Journalists for Open Government is conducting research on journalists' difficulties in obtaining public information from the federal government. Topline results, and possibly the complete report, will be released during Sunshine Week 2008. CJOG Coordinator Pete Weitzel also serves as a member of Sunshine Week's executive committee
College Media Advisers recently invited Sunshine Week to speak about the Sunshine Campaign during a breakout session at its annual convention in Washington, and will continue to communicate Campaign updates to its members. CMA Executive Director Ron Spielberger is serving as college coordinator for Sunshine Week 2008.
-- The First Amendment Center will host its 10th annual National Freedom of Information Day at the Freedom Forum’s Newseum in Washington on the Friday leading up to Sunshine Week. Speakers will include J. William Leonard, former director of the Information Security Oversight Office.
-- The League of Women Voters will again co-sponsor an access discussion organized by OpenTheGovernment.org that will be webcast from The National Press Club during Sunshine Week, and it is encouraging local Leagues to join with libraries and others to watch the program and engage in local conversations on the issues. In addition, local Leagues are encouraged not only to hold other Sunshine Week events, but also to include open government-related questions in state and local debates and in their voter guides.
The Executive Committee of the National Conference of Editorial Writers passed a resolution urging its members to ask candidates about open government issues in meetings with candidates. NCEW which does not makeinstitutional endorsements, said that, "At the least, raising the issue during the limited time of an endorsement interview will demonstrate to candidates that we consider open government to be a priority." NCEW's Open Government Committee will act as a clearinghouse for information about the Sunshine Campaign between members and the Sunshine Week team.
-- The National Freedom of Information Coalition is working with its members to coordinate activities of state FOI coalitions across the country, including identifying state-specific open government issues to help with development of localized questions. In addition, an NFOIC-sponsored research assistant is helping with populating the Sunshine Campaign online database. NFOIC Executive Director Charles Davis is coordinating state FOI and First Amendment groups.
-- The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association has committed to including Sunshine Campaign updates in its monthly electronic and quarterly print communications to members, as well as to exploring the possibility of including a special Sunshine Campaign interactive panel at the NLGJA National Convention in Washington next year.
-- OpenTheGovernment.org, a national coalition of organizations concerned with openness and secrecy, is working on a third nationally broadcast panel discussion on access issues.
-- OpenTheGoverment’s event is expected to be a free webcast during Sunshine Week and will be available for satellite download by prior arrangement.
-- The Radio-Television News Directors Association has alerted its members to the goal of the Sunshine Campaign and urged their participation. RTNDA also will act as a receiving site for broadcast materials to be included in the online database and likely will undertake additional activities, such as creation of television and radio public service ads.
-- The board of the Society of American Archivists has expressed its support for Sunshine Week and will explore ways in which its members can become more involved.
-- The Society of Professional Journalists will mobilize its Sunshine Chairs in every state to keep thousands of journalists informed and coordinate FOI activities across the country, including identifying state-specific open government issues to help with development of localized questions.
-- The Union of Concerned Scientists is working with Sunshine Week to highlight areas where secrecy has negatively impacted federal government scientific integrity such as global warming and food and drug safety. During the Sunshine Campaign UCS will continue to monitor new executive orders and agency policies that further restrict transparency in federal science and science-based decision-making, with a focus on identifying steps Congress and the next president should take to restore openness. In addition, Sunshine Week is a participant in the UCS-chaired Integrity in Science Working Group.
-- American University Washington College of Law Professor Daniel J. Metcalfe, who heads a new center there called the Collaboration on Government Secrecy, will hold a day-long program on March 17. It will include sessions on freedom of information, international transparency and pseudo-secrecy issues, as well as a luncheon speech by U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth, former Chief Judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
This is just a sampling of the groups, news organizations, libraries, schools, government officials and others that are planning to mark Sunshine Week. Several organizations have indicated support for the Sunshine Campaign and are working on as-yet undefined projects. They include the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press; and a coalition of 10 media groups called the Sunshine in Government Initiative.
For more information, visit www.sunshineweek.org.
About Knight Foundation: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. For more information about Knight Foundation, go to http://www.knightfdn.org
Contact:
Debra Gersh Hernandez
Sunshine Week Coordinator
dghernandez@asne.org; 703-807-2100
Sunshine Week 2008 Hits the Campaign Trail:
Candidates from President to Mayor to be Quizzed on Access Issues
Actors, Scientists, Researchers Join Growing Call for Open Government
Washington, D.C. — The Sunshine Week alliance has begun a yearlong Sunshine Campaign project to bring the discussion of open government issues to election campaigns from president to local city council. While the initiative expands the scope of Sunshine Week to cover the entire election season, specific events and coverage are still planned for Sunshine Week, March 16-22, 2008.
Sunshine Week is a non-partisan open government initiative led by the American Society of Newspaper Editors, with online and broadcast media, public officials, celebrities, civic groups, non-profits, libraries, schools, religious leaders and others. It is primarily funded by a challenge grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
The Sunshine Campaign is designed to spur campaign conversation — and commitment — to open government during the presidential race and continuing on through to city council contests. Journalists, and anyone else with the opportunity, are encouraged to ask every candidate for public office to explain his or her positions on open government and Freedom of Information issues.
The replies, sent in to Sunshine Week by participants and observers, will be used to develop a database of presidential statements, positions, votes and views across a variety of open government issues as a running reference. Independent research on previous statements, votes and other available relevant FOI data also will be in the database.
During one of its initial Sunshine Campaign activities, Sunshine Week teamed with The Creative Coalition to discuss open government issues at the recent Democratic presidential candidates' debate in Las Vegas.
Among those attending a dinner co-sponsored by The Creative Coalition and Sunshine Week were Coalition co-president and actor Joe Pantoliano and actors/members Tim Daly, Kerry Washington, James Denton, Matthew Modine and Richard Schiff. Other guests included Craig Newmark, founder of Craigslist; Eric Alterman, author and columnist for The Nation; and writer, producer and pundit Lawrence O'Donnell Jr.
Sunshine Week and The Creative Coalition are exploring opportunities to partner for other activities promoting government transparency during the 2008 presidential campaign.
"Open government is the very essence of our democracy. We’re proud to partner with Sunshine Week to ensure that every citizen has access to information and the ability to express their First Amendment right to free speech," said Robin Bronk, executive director of The Creative Coalition.
Sunshine Week also has sent a questionnaire on a variety of open government issues has been sent to the campaign offices of the 16 leading Democratic and Republican candidates. They have been asked to respond by mid-December. Answers will be posted on the Sunshine Week Web site as they are received.
Promotional materials featuring Sunshine Campaign "spokesmammals" Ronnie and Donnie (representing a Republican elephant and Democratic donkey) will be available to participants. Sunshine Campaign items will include print and Web ads, T-shirts and other clothing, buttons, campaign yard signs and stickers.
Resources such as suggested questions and links to additional material to help get people involved in the project are on the Sunshine Week Web site, www.sunshineweek.org.
Significant support for the Sunshine Campaign's online database of candidates' positions on open government is being provided by the National Security Archive at George Washington University. In 2007, the Archive's Mexico Project oversaw the launch of México Abierto, a media initiative modeled on Sunshine Week. Now, the candidate database is being built with the help of the project’s transparency coordinator, Emilene MartÃnez-Morales, and it will serve as a model for a similar issues database in Mexico.
"The Sunshine Campaign Website is an important tool that will keep the public informed about where candidates stand on openness before they take office, allowing voters to make an informed choice," said MartÃnez-Morales. "It is an effort that can serve as a model to monitor all kinds of campaigns, from presidential to local city council, not only in the United States but in other countries as well."
Sunshine Week also is working with Project Vote Smart, which has included questions specific to open government on its Political Courage Test, a non-partisan survey sent to every candidate regarding his or her position on a variety of issues.
Only three of the leading presidential candidates — Chris Dodd, John Edwards and Mike Gravel — have responded to the survey, despite repeated efforts by news organizations, prominent members of the Project Vote Smart board and others to compel a reply.
"This test demonstrated the obvious relationship between exploding campaign financing, candidates' ability to control their messages and the public's loss of access to information," said Project Vote Smart President Richard Kimball. Project Vote Smart has seen participation in its survey of federal candidates drop from 72 percent in 1968 to 48 percent in 2006.
Project Vote Smart also is helping to ensure openness in government by providing detailed accounts of legislation passed by Congress and all 50 state legislatures, as well as an in-depth database of public statements made by candidates and elected officials from across the nation. The information can be found online at www.votesmart.org
"In a time where elected officials are determined to stonewall the public, hopefully it will provide comfort to the citizens of the country to know that there are people who are committed to ensuring that there is openness and honesty in government," Kimball said.
Other Sunshine Campaign efforts underway include:
-- Channel One Network will distribute 250,000 teacher guide-posters for its "1Voice" First Amendment project that includes an article about celebrating Sunshine Week 2008. The poster explains Sunshine Week and points to why open government matters to teachers and students. To further highlight the importance of open government to teens, Channel One News will produce and air a "1Voice" segment centered on this critical topic, scheduled to air in conjunction with Sunshine Week.
-- The Coalition of Journalists for Open Government is conducting research on journalists' difficulties in obtaining public information from the federal government. Topline results, and possibly the complete report, will be released during Sunshine Week 2008. CJOG Coordinator Pete Weitzel also serves as a member of Sunshine Week's executive committee
College Media Advisers recently invited Sunshine Week to speak about the Sunshine Campaign during a breakout session at its annual convention in Washington, and will continue to communicate Campaign updates to its members. CMA Executive Director Ron Spielberger is serving as college coordinator for Sunshine Week 2008.
-- The First Amendment Center will host its 10th annual National Freedom of Information Day at the Freedom Forum’s Newseum in Washington on the Friday leading up to Sunshine Week. Speakers will include J. William Leonard, former director of the Information Security Oversight Office.
-- The League of Women Voters will again co-sponsor an access discussion organized by OpenTheGovernment.org that will be webcast from The National Press Club during Sunshine Week, and it is encouraging local Leagues to join with libraries and others to watch the program and engage in local conversations on the issues. In addition, local Leagues are encouraged not only to hold other Sunshine Week events, but also to include open government-related questions in state and local debates and in their voter guides.
The Executive Committee of the National Conference of Editorial Writers passed a resolution urging its members to ask candidates about open government issues in meetings with candidates. NCEW which does not makeinstitutional endorsements, said that, "At the least, raising the issue during the limited time of an endorsement interview will demonstrate to candidates that we consider open government to be a priority." NCEW's Open Government Committee will act as a clearinghouse for information about the Sunshine Campaign between members and the Sunshine Week team.
-- The National Freedom of Information Coalition is working with its members to coordinate activities of state FOI coalitions across the country, including identifying state-specific open government issues to help with development of localized questions. In addition, an NFOIC-sponsored research assistant is helping with populating the Sunshine Campaign online database. NFOIC Executive Director Charles Davis is coordinating state FOI and First Amendment groups.
-- The National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association has committed to including Sunshine Campaign updates in its monthly electronic and quarterly print communications to members, as well as to exploring the possibility of including a special Sunshine Campaign interactive panel at the NLGJA National Convention in Washington next year.
-- OpenTheGovernment.org, a national coalition of organizations concerned with openness and secrecy, is working on a third nationally broadcast panel discussion on access issues.
-- OpenTheGoverment’s event is expected to be a free webcast during Sunshine Week and will be available for satellite download by prior arrangement.
-- The Radio-Television News Directors Association has alerted its members to the goal of the Sunshine Campaign and urged their participation. RTNDA also will act as a receiving site for broadcast materials to be included in the online database and likely will undertake additional activities, such as creation of television and radio public service ads.
-- The board of the Society of American Archivists has expressed its support for Sunshine Week and will explore ways in which its members can become more involved.
-- The Society of Professional Journalists will mobilize its Sunshine Chairs in every state to keep thousands of journalists informed and coordinate FOI activities across the country, including identifying state-specific open government issues to help with development of localized questions.
-- The Union of Concerned Scientists is working with Sunshine Week to highlight areas where secrecy has negatively impacted federal government scientific integrity such as global warming and food and drug safety. During the Sunshine Campaign UCS will continue to monitor new executive orders and agency policies that further restrict transparency in federal science and science-based decision-making, with a focus on identifying steps Congress and the next president should take to restore openness. In addition, Sunshine Week is a participant in the UCS-chaired Integrity in Science Working Group.
-- American University Washington College of Law Professor Daniel J. Metcalfe, who heads a new center there called the Collaboration on Government Secrecy, will hold a day-long program on March 17. It will include sessions on freedom of information, international transparency and pseudo-secrecy issues, as well as a luncheon speech by U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth, former Chief Judge of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
This is just a sampling of the groups, news organizations, libraries, schools, government officials and others that are planning to mark Sunshine Week. Several organizations have indicated support for the Sunshine Campaign and are working on as-yet undefined projects. They include the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press; and a coalition of 10 media groups called the Sunshine in Government Initiative.
For more information, visit www.sunshineweek.org.
About Knight Foundation: The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. For more information about Knight Foundation, go to http://www.knightfdn.org
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Nice new audit by Cal Aware...
The vast majority of San Diego’s law enforcement agencies are still not meeting the basic requirements of California public records law, according to an audit organized by Californians Aware, an open government advocacy group.
The audit, carried out in San Diego by local journalists, found that local law enforcement agencies had reasonable or good customer-service levels, but that most of them still do not provide citizens with basic information about crimes.
The California Public Records Act requires that such information, including traffic accident reports, crime logs and an agency’s financial records be made available to the public. In theory, any citizen should be able to walk into their local police station and pick up a report on a crime that has been committed in their neighborhood.
But when auditors in San Diego tried to do just that they came up empty-handed time and time again, according to the audit. The auditors visited the major police stations for 12 law enforcement agencies in the county and asked for a police report on a recent burglary or other property crime in the area. The auditors took notes on everything from how they were treated by police staff to how long it took to get their results.
More here.
The audit, carried out in San Diego by local journalists, found that local law enforcement agencies had reasonable or good customer-service levels, but that most of them still do not provide citizens with basic information about crimes.
The California Public Records Act requires that such information, including traffic accident reports, crime logs and an agency’s financial records be made available to the public. In theory, any citizen should be able to walk into their local police station and pick up a report on a crime that has been committed in their neighborhood.
But when auditors in San Diego tried to do just that they came up empty-handed time and time again, according to the audit. The auditors visited the major police stations for 12 law enforcement agencies in the county and asked for a police report on a recent burglary or other property crime in the area. The auditors took notes on everything from how they were treated by police staff to how long it took to get their results.
More here.
The Latest from PA...
A bill expanding the public's access to government records in Pennsylvania sailed through the state Senate today, although advocates said it could leave the legislature itself shrouded in secrecy.
The 48-1 vote in favor of Senate Bill 1 sets up a potential conflict with a new House version of open-records legislation that, advocates say, is stronger in some respects.
Like the House bill, which was approved by a committee today, the Senate measure would flip a key aspect of current law on its head by declaring that government records are presumed public unless they fall under 28 specific exemptions.
But the Senate bill does not extend the same presumption of openness to the legislature itself, advocates said.
"Neither of them are A-list bills at this point. They're still flawed," said Barry L. Kauffman, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania. But, he said, "I keep hoping - always an optimist - that we'll get a bill that other states look at as the model."
The Senate bill's sponsor, Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi (R., Delaware), disputed criticism that it does not go far enough. He said it was as strong as open-records laws in many other states.
"Reform may very well have been the word uttered most often in this building over the past year," Pileggi said during floor debate. "There is no other reform that comes close to matching the impact of a strong open-records law."
More here.
FOI at Work: On the Campaign Trail With Rudy
As New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani billed obscure city agencies for tens of thousands of dollars in security expenses amassed during the time when he was beginning an extramarital relationship with future wife Judith Nathan in the Hamptons, according to previously undisclosed government records.
The documents, obtained by Politico under New York’s Freedom of Information Law, show that the mayoral costs had nothing to do with the functions of the little-known city offices that defrayed his tabs, including agencies responsible for regulating loft apartments, aiding the disabled and providing lawyers for indigent defendants.
At the time, the mayor’s office refused to explain the accounting to city auditors, citing “security.”
More here.
Telecom lobbying records opened...
An electronic privacy group challenging President Bush's domestic spying program scored a minor victory when a judge ordered the federal government to release information about lobbying efforts by telecommunications companies to protect them from prosecution.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation in January 2006 filed a class-action suit against AT&T Inc., accusing the company of illegally making communications on its networks available to the National Security Agency without warrants.
Congress is now considering changing the law to grant retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that would protect them from such court challenges.
"Any attempt for immunity is aimed at getting these very important cases swept back under the rug," EFF spokeswoman Rebecca Jeschke said Wednesday.
The EFF wants to know about "discussions, briefings or other exchanges" telecommunications companies have had recently with the Officer of the Director of National Intelligence, according to the court order, issued Tuesday.
"We're excited to see what's in them," Jeschke said of the Freedom of Information Act release. "It shows how relevant the FOIA is and how important it is for the government to respond quickly particularly during a time when the country is debating an important issue. This judge recognized that it's important for people to know everything they can."
The court set a Dec. 10 deadline for release of the documents.
More here.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
PA FOI Reform Back On Drawing Board...
They're back at it in Pennsylvania...
Sponsors of open records legislation are back to emphasizing substance over form.
Gone is a provision to exempt most public officials’ e-mail from public scrutiny, an issue that made for a controversial House vote on open records last month.
Instead, a new open records bill in the House provides that state and local officials judge the content of a record, not whether it’s in electronic form or on paper, to determine whether a document can be handed over to a citizen upon request.
The Senate open records bill up for a possible floor vote this week also makes content the litmus test for public disclosure.
The new House bill parallels the Senate bill sponsored by Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi, R-Chester, in many respects. The main thrust of both bills is to declare that government records are considered open unless stated otherwise and to put the burden of proof on a government or agency as to why a record should not be made public.
The expectation is each chamber will pass it own bill version, said House Deputy Speaker Josh Shapiro, D-Montgomery, on Monday. Then a conference committee will be formed to produce a joint bill that can be voted down in each chamber.
The House bill represents an effort to regain support from groups like Pennsylvania Common Cause and the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association. They criticized a measure that emerged from hours of House floor debate last month as a step backwards.
More here.
The old private e-mail account argument, again...
The Evesham, New Jersey, school district and the American Civil Liberties Union are fighting in court over records relating to a controversial video that shows gay families.
The ACLU's New Jersey chapter said Monday the district has refused to provide e-mail sent to and from school board members about the health-class film, "That's a Family!"
The documentary sparked an outcry from both critics and supporters after it was shown to a third-grade class in December. Board members pulled it from the district's curriculum in August.
The ACLU said the e-mail must be made available under the group's Aug. 30 request for all public records concerning the video dispute. The group said the district contends the e-mail messages are not public records because board members use private e-mail accounts.
More here.
A Loophole You Could Drive a Truck Through in Jersey
The Corzine administration does not have to make public a consultant’s study on a proposal to sell or lease toll roads, a Superior Court judge ruled Monday.
More here.
Judge Linda Feinberg declined to dismiss the case, as requested by the administration. But ultimately she ruled in Governor Corzine’s favor, agreeing that the report by London-based Steer Davies Gleave could remain private because it falls under the category of “inter-agency or intra-agency advisory, consultative, or deliberative material,” which are exempt from the state’s Open Public Records Act.
Feinberg’s written ruling stated her decision was based, in part, on the fact that “the Governor has not decided whether to propose proceeding with a monetization program or, if such a program is deemed desirable, how to structure the program.” Feinberg also wrote that “disclosure of the withheld materials could lead to confusion of the public.”More here.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Chesapeake Judge Opens Records
A judge has ruled in favor of The Virginian-Pilot in a civil action against the city for its failure to comply with the Freedom of Information Act.
Circuit Judge V. Thomas Forehand Jr., in a written opinion, directed the city to turn over to the newspaper records of property damage and other liability claims against the city.
The judge also ruled that the city's attempt to charge the newspaper $178.53 for supplying the records "was not proper."
The newspaper filed the action in September after making several FOIA requests to the city for records regarding general liability claims and automobile claims paid by the city.
More here.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Now HERE is a novel twist on FOI...
A man who suspected his wife of having an affair should be able to see messages exchanged through state government e-mail accounts by his wife and her co-worker, a judge ruled yesterday.
Franklin Circuit Court Judge Phillip J. Shepherd ordered the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet to give Stephen Malmer e-mails written between his wife, Bobbie Malmer, and former state employee David Moss from Nov. 1, 2005, to June 1, 2006.
Stephen Malmer of Frankfort requested the e-mails in June 2006, saying they were public records covered by the Open Records Act.
Malmer said last night he wanted the e-mails because he suspected his wife was having an affair. Although his wife has since confessed to the affair, Stephen Malmer said, he still has questions and wants to see the case through for closure.
"It's been such a nightmare," Stephen Malmer said. "I was horrified by the amount of opposition I ran up against."
Malmer said his wife has been supportive in his fight for the e-mails. He said she no longer has access to the e-mails and can't provide them herself.
The Cabinet's general counsel said the e-mails were exempt from public disclosure for reasons including a personal privacy exception to the statute, and it denied the request.
The Office of the Attorney General later found the Cabinet violated the Open Records Act, and Shepherd agreed.
"In this case, the communications are by definition non-work-related, but that does not mean there is no public interest in the disclosure of such e-mails," Shepherd wrote in his ruling. "The fact that state employees are using state resources to exchange non-work-related messages during working hours is a matter of legitimate inquiry for the public."
More here.
JoPa's Salary, Long A State Secret, Revealed
In a decision reaffirming the public's right to know how state money is spent, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled yesterday that the state retirement system must disclose the salary of legendary football coach Joe Paterno.
"Individuals and private entities cannot reasonably expect the Commonwealth to keep secrets from its citizens regarding the disbursement of public funds, past, present or future," wrote Justice James J. Fitzgerald 3d in the high court's 4-2 decision.
Paterno's Penn State salary has been a closely guarded secret for years. Estimates have put his compensation at above $1 million.
The ruling came in a case that began in 2002 when a reporter for the Harrisburg Patriot-News asked the State Employees Retirement System (SERS) for the salaries of Paterno and three other Penn State officials. The agency granted the request, but the university went to court.
Yesterday's decision is expected to pave the way for the disclosure of not just Paterno's salary, but the salary of any Penn State employee enrolled in the retirement system. Enrolling in the system makes each a "state employee" under state law, the ruling said.
More here.
Ohio Gun Permits: Yours to Memorize
Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann sided with law enforcement and concealed-carry gun advocates in an opinion prohibiting journalists from writing down, or in any way recording, the names of gun owners kept by county sheriffs.
More here.
More here.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Great New FOI-Driven Series on NCAA Drug Testing
From a team including Mu J-School alum Nate Carlisle, a school-by-school look at athletic drug testing opens with a bang:
When an athlete at the University of Idaho failed a drug test nearly three years ago and became one of the few collegians caught cheating with performance-enhancing drugs, something remarkable happened:
Almost nothing.
He was not publicly identified or ruled ineligible. He was not banned from competition. He was not even suspended.
Instead, he faced only continued periodic testing over the next year, according to school records, and was required to enroll in a university counseling program. The school "encouraged" him to notify his parents.
Outrageous?
Try, unsurprising.
More here.
The complete breakdown by school is available here.
When an athlete at the University of Idaho failed a drug test nearly three years ago and became one of the few collegians caught cheating with performance-enhancing drugs, something remarkable happened:
Almost nothing.
He was not publicly identified or ruled ineligible. He was not banned from competition. He was not even suspended.
Instead, he faced only continued periodic testing over the next year, according to school records, and was required to enroll in a university counseling program. The school "encouraged" him to notify his parents.
Outrageous?
Try, unsurprising.
More here.
The complete breakdown by school is available here.
Word of a vote in PA...
House Democrats said Monday they would attempt to move a new open records bill that closely follows an approach being considered by the Senate, but goes a step farther by fully applying the law to the Legislature.
The announcement by Majority Leader Bill DeWeese, D-Greene, followed a sequence of events Monday afternoon in which his party thought the Intergovernmental Affairs Committee had approved a bill to be used as a vehicle for the amendment, only to realize they were a vote short, then failed in an effort to vote on it again.
DeWeese said the same language will be considered Tuesday in the form of an amendment to a previously considered records bill. Because of the problems with the committee votes on Monday, it will require a two-thirds majority vote to suspend the House rules before any action can be taken.
More here.A New Study Finds Greater Transparency in States
From Rebecca Carr of Cox Newspapers comes word of a new study...
While government secrecy rises at the federal level, a new study indicates that the states are becoming more transparent.
But the study, conducted by Washington-based Corporate Research Project of Good Jobs First, found that states are taking advantage of the internet to inform the public.
“The internet makes possible an unprecedented level of government transparency and public participation,” said Greg LeRoy, executive director of Good Jobs First. “But many states have been slow to adopt vigorous online disclosure, especially with respect to economic development subsidies.”
Check out your state here.
Some 27 states and the District of Columbia still provide no systematic online subsidy disclosure, according to the study.
Friday, November 16, 2007
The Missouri E-Mail Saga Continues...
Much, much more on the Great Missouri E-Mail Flap, as the governor agrees to begin retaining all e-mail and the state AG announces an investigation. The public records status of e-mail is one of the major issues of the day.
Read all about it here. And here, for the governor's rection, questioning the ability of the AG to launch such an investigation at all. This soap opera is far from over...
And Missouri is not alone. Texas is also in the midst of an e-mail spat involving the governor.
Read all about it here. And here, for the governor's rection, questioning the ability of the AG to launch such an investigation at all. This soap opera is far from over...
And Missouri is not alone. Texas is also in the midst of an e-mail spat involving the governor.
Florida Guv Unveils FOI Bill of Rights
Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida continues to show how it's done when it comes to open government. Crist just announced two new open government initiatives that will improve Floridians’ ability to access public documents and meetings. The first initiative involves a Bill of Rights for all Floridians trying to access public records. The second initiative involves improving Internet access to state agency contact information.
Here is the Bill of Rights for FOI:
Here is the Bill of Rights for FOI:
STATE OF FLORIDA
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
EXECUTIVE ORDER NUMBER 07-242
WHEREAS, an open and accessible government is the key to establishing and maintaining the people’s trust and confidence in their government and its ability to effectively serve its citizens; and
WHEREAS, the state of Florida has a long history of providing public access to the records and meetings of public entities; and
WHEREAS, Florida must continually strive to be a national leader in open government reform; and
WHEREAS, on June 19, 2007, by Executive Order 07-107, I created the Commission on Open Government to review, evaluate, and issue recommendations regarding Florida’s public records and public meetings laws; and
WHEREAS, the Commission on Open Government met on August 22-23, 2007 and received public testimony requesting the need for greater ease of access to public meetings and documents, the need to increase the respect with which our government agencies interact with our citizens, and create a culture which will build the people’s trust and confidence in their government and its ability to serve the people;
WHEREAS, streamlining and clarifying applicable laws and policies will result in making government more open, accessible, and accountable to its citizens; and
NOW, THEREFORE, I, CHARLIE CRIST, as Governor of Florida, by virtue of the authority vested in me by Article IV, Section (1)(a) of the Florida Constitution, and all other applicable laws, promulgate the following Executive Order, to take immediate effect:
Section 1.
All agencies under the direction of the Governor shall adopt an Open Government Bill of Rights to guarantee that the right of access to public meetings and records is safeguarded and protected. This Bill of Rights shall be conspicuously posted on the agency’s website and at the agency’s headquarters. It shall include the following provisions:
A. A statement that the public is entitled to be treated with respect, courtesy, and professionalism.
B. A statement that a public records request does not have to be made in writing unless a specific statute requires otherwise. In that case, the statute imposing such a requirement shall be cited.
C. A statement that receipt of all public record requests shall be acknowledged promptly and in good faith as required by section 119.07(1)(b), Florida Statutes.
D. A statement that fees shall not exceed the amount authorized by section 119.07(4), Florida Statutes, unless another amount is expressly authorized by law. In that case, the statute imposing such a requirement shall be cited.
E. A statement that the public has the right to an itemized invoice of proposed fees or fees charged.
F. A statement recognizing that access to public records and meetings are rights secured under sections 119.07(1) and 286.011, Florida Statutes and Article 1, Section 24, Florida Constitution.
Section 2.
All state agencies under the direction of the Governor are directed, and all other state agencies are requested, to provide such assistance to the individuals carrying out the directions in this Executive Order as may be requested in furtherance of the objectives described.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have
hereunto set my hand and caused the Great
Seal of the state of Florida to be affixed, at
Tallahassee, this 15th day of November, 2007.
Charlie Crist
Governor
Thursday, November 15, 2007
In Washington, D.C., today...
I'm in D.C. attending a conference and presenting a paper on media coverage of the Department of Homeland Security sponsored by the St. Mary's Center for Terrorism Law, and will attempt to blog a bit as we go.
Sen. John Cornyn is opening the conference as I blog, and he laid it all out nicely: if we open everything, we risk everything; but if we close everything, we risk everything....and the devil lies in the balance. Sen. Cornyn, of course, is a co-sponsor of the FOI reform bill awaiting House approval. He also mentioned the Presidential Records Act bill, which he also is co-sponsoring, and he made a great point: information that belongs to the people should be presumptively public. I haven't heard that simple, yet important formulation uttered in the Beltway in a long, long time.
Now if we could just get the rest of Congres (paging Sen. Bunning) and the president to agree.
Sen. John Cornyn is opening the conference as I blog, and he laid it all out nicely: if we open everything, we risk everything; but if we close everything, we risk everything....and the devil lies in the balance. Sen. Cornyn, of course, is a co-sponsor of the FOI reform bill awaiting House approval. He also mentioned the Presidential Records Act bill, which he also is co-sponsoring, and he made a great point: information that belongs to the people should be presumptively public. I haven't heard that simple, yet important formulation uttered in the Beltway in a long, long time.
Now if we could just get the rest of Congres (paging Sen. Bunning) and the president to agree.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
In Iowa, a reform effort takes shape...
The Des Moines Register updates the FOI reform effort in Iowa...
Advocates of open government in Iowa have urged a bipartisan legislative committee to provide for tougher enforcement of state open-meetings and open-records laws. The committee heard the plea, and last week it endorsed what could be the most vigorous enforcement process in the 40-year history of the two statutes and the most important change in open government for the people of Iowa - ever.
There is much legislative ground to be plowed before this comes to be, however, and many details remain to be seen in the actual bill draft. But the committee deserves credit for a bold proposal designed to make state and local government more accessible to the people of Iowa.
The danger is that, in exchange for tougher enforcement, the Legislature will be pressured to water down the existing meetings and records statutes. The argument for weakened laws goes like this: Citizens don't go on frivolous fishing expeditions in government files now because, if they are denied, they are discouraged from pressing ahead because of the cost of hiring a lawyer and going to court. That barrier would be removed by a tough enforcement process that costs citizens nothing.
Advocates of open government in Iowa have urged a bipartisan legislative committee to provide for tougher enforcement of state open-meetings and open-records laws. The committee heard the plea, and last week it endorsed what could be the most vigorous enforcement process in the 40-year history of the two statutes and the most important change in open government for the people of Iowa - ever.
There is much legislative ground to be plowed before this comes to be, however, and many details remain to be seen in the actual bill draft. But the committee deserves credit for a bold proposal designed to make state and local government more accessible to the people of Iowa.
The danger is that, in exchange for tougher enforcement, the Legislature will be pressured to water down the existing meetings and records statutes. The argument for weakened laws goes like this: Citizens don't go on frivolous fishing expeditions in government files now because, if they are denied, they are discouraged from pressing ahead because of the cost of hiring a lawyer and going to court. That barrier would be removed by a tough enforcement process that costs citizens nothing.
According to that line of thinking, Iowans must choose between a weak law that's well enforced or a strong one that is not. That is a trade-off Iowans should not have to make.
While the legislative committee has not taken a solid position on that question, it has tentatively accepted one draft amendment that would substantially limit public access to government records in Iowa by exempting preliminary drafts of public records. This land mine should be avoided.
The General Assembly last session created the joint House-Senate interim committee to consider amending state laws on government records and meetings of public bodies. The problem cited most often is that county prosecutors and the Iowa attorney general rarely, if ever, enforce the law.
Thus, the committee on Friday approved a preliminary draft of proposed legislation that would create a new state board with the power to enforce the law by investigating and ruling on citizen complaints. The board could levy civil fines against state or local agencies or officials, and it would be authorized to offer - or require - training for public officials on the obligations of the law and to recommend changes in open-government law, if needed.
This opportunity to enlist the aid of the state in open-meetings or open-records disputes would cost nothing to the citizen complainant - unlike the current process, where someone alleging a violation of the law must hire a lawyer at his or her own expense. Most complaints likely would be resolved by staff, or through mediation. The board, sitting much like a court, would rule on contested cases. The board would have the authority to enforce its decisions, which either party could appeal to state district court.
The outlines of this "Iowa Public Information Board" is the work of University of Iowa law professor Arthur Bonfield in what he describes as an "amalgam" of so-called public-access counselors in other states. Most public-access agencies in other states, however, are limited to issuing advisory opinions. Bonfield's proposal is modeled more closely after Connecticut's Freedom of Information Commission, which has what's considered the toughest enforcement powers in the nation.
More here.
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