From TheHawkEye.com:
The Iowa Senate unanimously approved an overhaul of the state's open meetings and records law Monday in a plan designed to offer greater public access to government.
The plan now goes to Gov. Terry Branstad, who has been supportive of the concept but hasn't signed off on details. The proposal comes after years of debate about enforcing laws giving the public access to government meetings and records.
[…]
From DesMoinesRegister.com:
Iowa is getting a new state agency dedicated to enforcement of open government.
The Senate on Monday approved the bill, Senate File 430, on a 49-0 vote, sending the legislation to Gov. Terry Branstad, who championed the bill as one of his top legislative priorities this year.
[…]
From Topeka Capital-Journal:
Interim city manager Dan Stanley sent Shawnee County District Attorney Chad Taylor a letter Wednesday asking him to investigate whether the board of directors for the Topeka Metropolitan Transit Authority recently violated the Kansas Open Meetings Act.
[…]
From HeraldOnline:
The South Carolina House has approved a bill strengthening the state's open records law. The bill approved Thursday limits how much public bodies can charge for copies of documents and requires them to respond more quickly. An amendment also removes legislators' exemption from the law.
[…]
Read More… from SC House approves strengthening open records law
From The Jewish Week:
While Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes has repeatedly refused to divulge names of Orthodox child molesters charged or prosecuted though his office’s confidential Kol Tzedek hotline, a spokesman for the DA this week told The Jewish Week that, if presented with a name obtained through other means, his office would confirm whether the individual was reported through Kol Tzedek.
[…]
Read More… from In shift, Brooklyn DA opens window on abusers’ names
A few open government and FOIA news items selected from many of interest that we might or might not have drawn attention to earlier:
Jessica Dorrell, Bobby Petrino Scandal Shows Power Of FOIA
Bobby Petrino is just the latest Arkansas coach to reveal a bit too much on a state issued cell phone. Petrino was dismissed by Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long on before his phone records became available, but the revealing records won't make it any easier for him to land his next job.
[…]
From Baylor Lariat:
Difficulties in getting information from government sources shouldn’t scare reporters off from following their stories, Hadassah Schloss, Cost Rules Administrator for the Open Records Division of the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, told students at Baylor’s journalism awards banquet Tuesday.
[…]
Read More… from State employee recognized for First Amendment defense
From Press-Citizen:
You think a government board is trying to skirt the open meetings law by recessing for hours or days at a time, rather than posting the time and location for a new meeting 24 hours in advance. What do you do?
[…]
From Lehigh Valley Live:
The Oxford Township Committee amended its controversial public records ordinance last night to fall in line with the law — but it still didn't sit well with some of the public.
The township's limited request time is now 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
[…]
Read More… from Oxford Township Committee fixes flawed public records ordinance
From Huffington Post:
The oppressive monster known as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is not just killing jobs these days — it is intentionally avoiding transparency that may shed light on the political motivations behind the agency's actions.
[…]
