WASHINGTON, D.C. — The 2021 D.C. Open Government Summit will examine public and charter school transparency, the coronavirus pandemic’s ongoing impact on government records access, and the views regarding government transparency of two recently elected City Council members. This year, the annual Sunshine Week event – sponsored by the D.C. Open Government Coalition; the Society […]
Tag: DC Open Government Coalition
DCOGC’s Thomas Susman opposes budget act BEGA/OOG amendments
Incrementally, in fits and starts since 2010, the D.C. government has become more transparent to the people it serves. In response to the Fenty administration’s attempts to evade meaningful public oversight, and corruption scandals ensnaring high elected and appointed officials and political operatives, the D.C. Council enacted a new Open Meetings Act (OMA) and created […]
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DCOGC: Council should remove OOG from BEGA
April 13, 2018, Statement of Robert S. Becker – On behalf of the D.C. Open Government Coalition, Before the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety – Council of the District of Columbia, Budget Oversight Hearing – Board of Ethics and Government Accountability, Office of Open Government I am Robert Becker, the D.C. Open Government Coalition’s government […]
BEGA won’t reappoint OOG Director Hughes
Statement: D.C. Open Government Coalition Condemns Decision to Decline to Reappoint Office of Open Government Director Today, the District’s Board of Ethics and Government Accountability (BEGA) voted to not reappoint Office of Open Government Director Traci Hughes to another term. It did not state the rational for this decision. Since 2013, Ms. Hughes has carried […]
Novel Lawsuit Headed for First Showdown-DCOOG Seeking Injunction and Penalties for Violations of Open Meetings Act
The District of Columbia, citing the "novelty" of this Open Meetings Act enforcement action, got more time over the holidays for the mayor's Caribbean Community Affairs Commission to figure out its next step in the case. The commission is one of the D.C. mayor's many public advisory bodies, and is alleged to have failed in fulfilling the law's requirements to inform the public in advance about meetings and to furnish a record of each meeting promptly afterwards.
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From D.C. Open Gov Coalition: Claim of Excessive PACER Fees May Be Adjudicated After Years of Complaints
A class action lawsuit in federal court in the District of Columbia could mean refunds for millions – anyone who paid fees to access federal court records using the Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system in the last six years.
Plaintiffs are three nonprofit organizations—National Veterans Legal Services Program, National Consumer Law Center and the Alliance for Justice–who used the system but say the ever-increasing fees are excessive, far beyond what the law allows.
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DCOGC: New Report and Court Case Highlight Issues in Local Access to Federal Prosecutors’ D.C. Crime Stats
Echoing concerns in recent months in a pending federal lawsuit and repeated by a former D.C. Attorney General, a new report again cites the U.S. Attorney here for lack of transparency. This time, for failing to provide data on prosecutions of sexual assaults.
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D.C. Office of Open Government Sues to Stop Open Meetings Act Violations
Flexing its enforcement muscle in court for the first time, the Office of Open Government has filed suit against the Mayor’s Advisory Commission on Caribbean Community Affairs. D.C. law gives the independent Office power to go to court to enforce the D.C. Open Meetings Act.
According to the lawsuit filed in D.C. Superior Court, the Commission failed to post agendas or minutes of 11 meetings this year as the law requires. The lawsuit also says the Commission continued to meet without following the legal requirements despite repeated communications and offers of help.
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DCOGC: Blanket FOIA exemption dumped from ANC bill
D.C. Councilmember Anita Bonds, chair of the Committee on Housing and Community Development, announced in a Sept. 29, 2016 committee hearing that Advisory Neighborhood Commissions will not get a blanket exemption from the D.C. Freedom of Information Act.
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From DCOGC: D.C. Council Drops Secrecy Provisions in Metro Safety Panel
In a dramatic turnaround just hours before a hearing on legislation to create a new Metrorail Safety Commission, revisions to the legislation will beef up legal protections for transparency and public access, as advocates had been calling for.
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