A letter from government transparency organizations urges the Uniform Law Commission to prioritize the public’s right to know when it studies the redaction of personal information from public records. The June 17 letter was written by Sarah Brewerton-Palmer, legislative chair of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation, and was edited and endorsed by Todd Fettig, the […]
Tag: georgia first amendment foundation
Georgia health agency stymies requests for public records during pandemic
In the first four months of COVID-19 when Georgia saw more than 84,000 confirmed cases and nearly 3,000 deaths, journalists, advocates and lawyers submitted more than 40 records requests for emails about the Department of Public Health’s response to the pandemic. The requesters sought emails regarding the state’s allocation of resources, Gov. Brian Kemp’s April […]
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NFOIC Post: Atlanta launches new culture of transparency
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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Evans County (GA) BOE Emails Permanently Deleted
llOnGeorgia filed an Open Records Request in late June seeking the personnel file of former employee Sharon Threatte, documentation on employee salaries at the district office, and emails related to the pay of Sharon Threatte and the pay classification of district office employees. Superintendent Martin Waters quoted more than $11,000 in fees for said records […]
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City of Atlanta agrees to settle records case with AJC and Channel 2
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Channel 2 Action News have agreed to drop their claims against the city of Atlanta for what the media organizations described as “systemic violations” of the Georgia Open Records Act, according to an agreement reached this week. Under the agreement, the city will work with the news outlets over the next […]
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Atlanta’s Open Checkbook: a tool for transparency
Following a federal bribery probe investigating former Mayor Kasim Reed’s administration’s muddy financial dealings, the City of Atlanta announced a new transparency tool called Atlanta’s Open Checkbook. The Open Checkbook shows the City of Atlanta’s expenditure of more than $2 billion between 2017 and 2018. “Rather than waiting for the public to ask or waiting for […]
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Atlanta Meets Self-Imposed Transparency Portal Deadline
Working to deliver on one of five goals set earlier this year with the debut of the new Mayor’s Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Atlanta officials gathered to mark the debut of a portal aimed at tracking city funds Sept. 4. The initiative known as Open Checkbook was announced on April 10, less than a month after the […]
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Georgia police chiefs trained in open records
Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police members underwent open government training Tuesday.
The Valdosta Daily Times Editor Jim Zachary, in coordination with Valdosta Police Chief Brian Childress, led the class on the Georgia's open government legislation.
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Tate wins Georgia Freedom of Information Award as part of JQC
Earlier this year Cartersville Attorney Lester Tate won the Charles L. Weltner Freedom of Information Award from the Georgia First Amendment Foundation in recognition of his work on the Judicial Qualifications Commission for the state of Georgia.
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Clearing a path to a more open government in Georgia
Opinion from Hyde Post, via Reporter Newspapers:
Today, Georgians legally have more power than ever to examine and review the records and meetings of their local and state governments.
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