Gov. Jack Markell today signed into law a package of House bills sponsored by that expand and strengthen Delaware’s Freedom of Information Act. The bills were introduced in early May and passed both chambers of the General Assembly with unanimous votes.
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Read More… from Delaware Governor Markell Signs Four-Bill FOIA Package
The ongoing feud over the transparency of state pension fund investments between state Treasurer Janet Cowell and the State Employees Association of North Carolina has spawned dueling bills in the state legislature.
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Read More… from Dueling bills address transparency of NC pension fund investments
Vermont’s senior U.S. senator wants more transparency in government. Unfortunately, Vermont’s governor insists on less.
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Read More… from Vermont’s Leahy pushes transparency as Shumlin protects single-payer secrets
Sorry, political junkies: Your chance to tune in to state Assembly committee meetings online died at the end of the legislative session last week.
Yes, that may sound slightly less fun than watching paint dry. But for those interested, a proposal to require webcasts of legislative committee meetings could have offered a new window on how state lawmakers decide which proposals make it to the floor and which never see the light of day. The state Senate already offers such video, but the Assembly does not.
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Read More… from A more open New York government? Maybe next session
It’s become more than apparent since its passage in 1998 that Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act has holes that need to be filled if we are ever to ensure truly open government. Efforts have been made to amend the act and tighten its language, but it seems our Legislature has had more important things to do.
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Read More… from Editorial: When will PA Legislature let the sunshine in?
The campaign of state Rep. TOM CROSS for state treasurer thinks it is not fair that freedom of information requests to the House and Senate have been handled very differently.
The office of the House clerk released hundreds of pages of documents about the 21 years spent by Cross, a Republican from Oswego, in the Illinois House. Among those asking for the documents was ZACH KOUTSKY, campaign manager for state Sen. MIKE FRERICHS, D-Champaign, who is the Democratic candidate for treasurer.
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Read More… from IL House, Senate seem to handle info requests differently
Today Jason Leopold and Ryan Shapiro, commonly known as Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) warriors, upped the ante in their fight for more transparency from the CIA relating to its Bush-era torture and rendition program. Leopold, a freelance investigative journalist, and Shapiro, a researcher at MIT, have filed a lawsuit against the CIA compelling the agency to release documents about their spying on Senate lawmakers who were tasked with investigating CIA torture.
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Read More… from Exclusive: CIA Sued For Info Over Spying on Senate Torture Investigation
In Gainesville, Fla., it doesn’t take a Freedom of Information request to find out what city officials are chattering about on email. One merely has to go online and read them.
That city recently began posting email correspondence about public business to and from the mayor and the city commissioners. There may be other localities doing it as well, but this is the first one that’s been brought to my attention.
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On last night’s C-SPAN Q&A interview series, Sharyl Attkisson said the Obama administration has created “the worst atmosphere” journalists have ever faced, and called the Freedom of Information Act “a joke.”
Attkisson is an award-winning investigative reporter who earlier this year made headlines for resigning from CBS News after a 20-year career at the TV network. Earlier this month, she became a senior independent contributor to The Daily Signal.
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A Freedom of Information complaint has been filed against Board of Education Chairwoman Susan Hoffnagle, alleging email communications from February are in violation of FOI law.
The complaint was filed by fellow school board member Ray Rabago, persons with disabilities commission chairman Art Melycher and two others. A chain of emails sent on Feb. 19 between members of the Board of Education, members of the Board of Selectmen and Town Attorney Kevin Nelligan could constitute a meeting, depending on the ruling of the Freedom of Information Commission.
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Read More… from FOI Complaint filed against education board chairman in CT
