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…
Tag: Georgia
Four state open government champions to be inducted into the National Freedom of Information Coalition’s Open Government Hall of Fame
For Immediate Release – March 27, 2019 Contact: Daniel Bevarly, Executive Director National Freedom of Information Coalition dbevarly@nfoic.org 352-294-7082 Four state open government champions to be inducted into the National Freedom of Information Coalition’s Open Government Hall of Fame Four “Heroes of the 50 States” — representing California, Georgia, South Dakota and…
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…
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…
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…
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…
Secretive Nonprofits Back Governors Around The Country
Optics aside, Greitens isn't the only governor connected to supportive nonprofit organizations.
Groups in Arizona, Illinois and Georgia have sprung up to help the states' governors, while avoiding traditional donation requirements. Robert Maguire of the Center for Responsive Politics said the groups are the "unlimited, undisclosed arm of the administration that basically … bolsters the agenda of the governor."
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Georgia Court Rules Open Records Act Won’t Cover Academic Research
The Georgia Court of Appeals has ruled that academic research at a public college is exempt from the state Open Records Act.
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Lawsuit: Georgia Court Denying Records’ Access, Violates Law
A west Georgia court is jailing people illegally and then making it impossible for them to challenge the violation of their rights by denying them access to their public court records, a lawsuit alleges.
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Immigrant detainees in Georgia more likely to be deported than detainees elsewhere
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained over 243,000 immigrants in Fiscal Year 2015 (FY 2015).1 The detained immigrants are housed in a patchwork of public and private facilities around the country under contract with ICE.
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