SALEM — Oregon’s departing public records advocate said high fees often create a barrier for requesters seeking public information, and called for more clarity and less discretion for public bodies assessing fees to fill those requests. In her 11-page final report on Wednesday, Ginger McCall said fees were “perhaps the single most pressing issue related […]
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State law requires local governments to be open and transparent. These two facets are important for the community as well as news outlets, in order for everyone to be remain informed. City and county leaders are legally required to maintain compliance with open government laws. Weatherford Mayor Paul Paschall said transparency is important to not […]
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VALDOSTA — “Sunshine Laws: A Guide to Open Government in Georgia,” known as the state as “Red Book” has been updated, revised and the sixth edition is now available to the public. The guide contains the state’s open government laws verbatim, reprinted from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, regarding Georgia’s Open Records Act and […]
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BOISE — The Idaho Public Records Law, in Idaho Code Section 74-102, has a strong presumption of openness. “Every person has a right to examine and take a copy of any public record of this state,” the law says, “and there is a presumption that all public records in Idaho are open at all reasonable […]
Nearly five years have passed since then-Gov. John Kitzhaber left office amid an influence peddling scandal and a backlog of public records requests from journalists seeking information about the governor and first lady’s dealings. In response to the records pileup, lawmakers in 2017 passed Oregon’s first public records deadline, giving governments 15 days to hand over […]
Under Wisconsin’s open government laws, any governmental body has to meet in public and announce what they will discuss in their meetings so folks can decide if they want to attend. Government can meet in closed session in a limited number of circumstances, such as when it is conducting judicial hearings, discussing employment and licensing […]
Read More… from New Law Firm Dedicated To Open Records Laws Launches
When state Sen. John Cooke asked for email communications of the top official for the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission last fall, the agency’s response stunned him. “There are no records responsive to your request,” the health department’s legal compliance director wrote. “Mike Silverstein ended employment with the Department prior to your request and his email […]
Read More… from Research: What Colorado needs to do to preserve the modern public record
By Daniel Bevarly, NFOIC executive director, dbevarly@nfoic.org Anyone interested in transparency in state and local governments must be following the developments in the City of Atlanta. The former administration of Mayor Kasim Reed was investigated for corruption leading to a guilty plea last month by a former cabinet member. Mayor’ Reed’s administration includes another dishonor: his […]
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DENVER (AP) — The press operation for Colorado’s liberal Democratic governor, Jared Polis, is being criticized after it asked two small town newspapers to remove from their websites a news story reported by what Polis’ staff deems a biased news organization funded by groups affiliated with the conservative Koch family. The Kiowa (KY-oh-wah) County Press […]
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A Tarrant County grand jury indicted Forest Hill Mayor Gerald Joubert Wednesday on charges of tampering with a government record. The grand jury ruled that Joubert did not properly witness signatures on petitions to recall former councilwoman Stephanie Boardingham. (Read more here…) […]
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