We hear governments boasting all the time about their transparency websites and there is no question that the material that’s posted on the Internet is generally leagues better than in the past.
But we have a gripe. There is one transparency topic that appears to be in deep decline – the recording of meeting minutes for work that takes place in legislative committee meetings, advisory panels, commissions and task forces.
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Read More… from Transparency: Government minutes missing in action
Even with the Freedom of Information Act, requesting government records remains an arduous process—especially compared to the efficiency of the legal world.
Earlier this month, House Oversight Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz wrote to the Federal Bureau of Investigation demanding former FBI director James Comey’s notes of conversations with President Trump.
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Read More… from Why Is Access To Public Records Still So Frustratingly Complicated?
Given the large shortfall facing lawmakers this year, one might think they would try to reduce potential waste, mismanagement and corruption regarding expenditure of taxpayer dollars. Instead, lawmakers passed a bill that would have reduced oversight of some multimillion-dollar contracts.
Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed the bill recently, and deserves credit for demanding greater accountability in government contracting.
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Read More… from Opinion: Transparency crucial in state contracting
A strong bipartisan majority of Colorado legislators came together during the 2017 legislative session to pass HB 1313 – Civil Forfeiture Reform.
The bill, which adds necessary transparency and due process protections to the asset forfeiture practices of Colorado law enforcement, passed out of both chambers by a combined 81-19 vote and is awaiting signature by Gov. John Hickenlooper.
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Read More… from Guest Column: In support of transparency and due process in Colorado
Oregon state government, agencies and commissions are shelling out hundreds millions of dollars to public relations firms. Eighty-seven state agencies spent $278 million dollars to convince taxpayers to spend more taxpayer dollars on bigger government, higher taxes – and more regulations from 2012 through 2016.
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Read More… from Oregon State Government’s $278 Million Self-Promotion ‘PR’ Machine
It took a liberal policy group, ProgressVA, to accomplish through public shaming what good-government advocates in Virginia have failed to accomplish over the years through reasoned arguments and rational discussions: force the Virginia General Assembly to take action that opens up the legislative process.
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Read More… from Virginia’s baby steps toward transparency (editorial)
Proponents of legislative reforms to improve South Carolina’s Freedom of Information Act didn’t get everything they had hoped for in the bill that passed on the last day of the session. But the bill came close, and it should be regarded as a victory for open government and citizens’ ability to gain access to public information.
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Read More… from South Carolina Public records law was a step forward (Editorial)
By Daniel Bevarly, Executive Director, NFOIC
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It’s optimistic to believe that this (or really any) legislative session in Virginia will make a turn toward openness and away from punching holes in the law that ensures public access to documents and meetings.
But maybe, just maybe, this could be a session where lawmakers choose to hold the line on those principles and act with deference toward the people’s right to know.
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Read More… from Virginian-Pilot editorial: Be a force for openness in government
A $1 million grant from the Craig Newmark Foundation, the charitable organization established by Craigslist Founder Craig Newmark, to the Poynter Institute addresses one of the thornier dilemmas arising from the recent election—how newsrooms should identify and respond to "fake news."
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Read More… from Philanthropist Craig Newmark Joining the Fight Against “Fake News”
