Maryland hiring ombudsman for public records controversies
Wanted: Public records expert with a willingness to jump into fights between the news media and government officials. Maryland's attorney general is now hiring an ombudsman to mediate disputes over...
View ArticleArkansas AG: Electronic files considered ‘in storage’ under FOI law
In an advisory opinion last week, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge addressed a question about the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act that the attorney general’s office had never been asked before,...
View ArticleEditorial: What’s in a tax break? Washingtonians should know
Imagine if your employer refused to say what’s being deducted from your paycheck, or your bank declined to reveal what’s automatically withdrawn from your account. That’s the situation for...
View ArticleCritics slam FBI’s new app that demands ID
The FBI’s new data-requesting eFOIA app comes with controversial terms: The agency wants your ID in exchange for the information. Critics argue that the FBI collecting the requesters’ sensitive...
View ArticleCommentary: Arlington lacking in government transparency
The Arlington Advocate is to be commended for its Nov. 15 editorial advocating for reform of the state’s Public Records Law. But it completely missed the mark in suggesting that Arlington could serve...
View ArticleGoogle urges US gov to be more open about online spying
From Firstpost: Search giant Google Inc pushed the US government to be more open about its online spying on Wednesday in the first such testimony before Congress by a major technology company since a...
View ArticleCOMPLY-Investor advocates push to see trove of arbitration records
From Reuters: Dec 5 (Reuters) - A long-running battle over whether the top U.S. securities regulator should release records about its supervision of Wall Street's arbitration process is about to go...
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2013 NFOIC/MLRC Open Government Survey Showed Troubling Trends for Transparency
Press release from MLRC and NFOIC: By Amaris Elliott-Engel, MLRC Legal FellowNFOIC’s third biennial joint study with the New York-based Media Law Resource Center (MLRC) showed a continuation of trends...
View ArticleEditorial: Staying well informed is a great way to protect your freedom
Thanks to whistleblowers like Chelsea Elizabeth Manning and Edward Snowden, we are learning to ask what our government knows like informed citizens in a democratic republic should. Manning and Snowden...
View ArticleOpinion: 10 times the government stonewalled requests for information
One of the core values of the American experiment is the idea of transparency. Citizens have a right to know what their government is up to – how tax dollars are being spent, what public servants do...
View ArticleA Rare Glimpse of Bipartisanship on Open Government
So this “lame duck” Congress may not be so lame after all – at least when it comes to increasing government transparency.read more
View ArticleWhite House crowdsources open-government playbook
The Obama administration is "walking the walk" on government transparency by asking the public to help write a guide for agencies on ways to engage the public."This resource reflects the commitment of...
View ArticleOpinion: A victory for open government
Government transparency is a favorite — and necessary — topic of the fourth estate. The push and pull for a more open government is constant here in Vermont and across the nation. On Monday, a victory...
View ArticleWichita's chance to increase government transparency on spending
The Wichita City Council can decide to increase transparency in regards to spending, or let it remain being spent in secret. The City of Wichita has three surrogate quasi-governmental agencies that...
View ArticleEditorial: state government: More transparency
A good government is one that responds to the wishes of the public. But the public cannot know how responsive its government is when much of what government does lies outside public view. Hence the...
View ArticleOpinion: When governments open their files, the public benefits
IN EARLY December, President Obama announced a series of measures aimed at closing the gap between citizens and law enforcement. One of those measures was a plan to distribute $263 million in funding...
View ArticleFOIA pledge garners more signatures, but none locally
A pledge circulated by advocates of government transparency to garner support for the state’s Freedom of Information Act has yielded additional signatures since it was reissued earlier this month....
View ArticleAdvocates worried by open meetings bill
Government transparency advocates say they are concerned about a newly filed bill that would change Wyoming’s public meetings law. House Bill 232 would allow public agencies to “take action upon...
View ArticleOpen meetings bill withdrawn in Wyoming House
A legislative proposal that had concerned government transparency advocates has been withdrawn by the bill’s sponsor. Rep. Bob Nicholas, R-Cheyenne, pulled House Bill 232 Thursday morning right before...
View ArticleOpen meetings laws don’t apply Tenn. transparency panel
A panel of experts assembled to offer advice on transparency issues is not subject to the state’s open meetings law. At least that’s the opinion of Ann Butterworth, who heads the Comptroller’s Office...
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