CFOIC looks back: Transparency highlights and lowlights in 2015
The private emails flap was one of many transparency-related stories we highlighted in 2015 or broke ourselves.
Colorado Legislature 2015
Supreme Court testimony: Records rules for the state judicial branch ‘do not inspire trust’
The Colorado Supreme Court heard from a state lawmaker and members of the public who are concerned about proposed regulations that will govern access to the administrative records of the Colorado Judicial Branch.
CFOIC’s Zansberg named to state panel on police body cameras
Steve Zansberg, president of the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition, has been appointed to serve on a new state committee that will study and report on issues related to the use of body-worn cameras by police officers in Colorado.
Sine die: How FOI legislation fared in the 2015 Colorado General Assembly
Unlike last year’s General Assembly, which amended both the open-records and open-meetings laws, state legislators in 2015 were somewhat quieter on matters affecting government transparency and the flow of information in Colorado. Still, significant new measures are expected to be signed into law. A few others didn’t make it.
Photo privacy bill dies in final hours of session
In the waning hours of the legislative session, state lawmakers gave up trying to find a way to protect peoples’ privacy from drones and other “emerging technologies” while not interfering with the First Amendment rights of photojournalists, private investigators and others who rely on cameras for work.
State lawmakers send right-to-record bill to governor’s desk, kill police body-camera bill
A bipartisan bill that underscores a civilian’s right to record police is on its way to Gov. John Hickenlooper’s desk following the House’s acceptance of a Senate amendment that limits how long someone’s cellphone or other recording device can be held while a search warrant is sought.
Senate committee agrees with First Amendment concerns about ‘expectation of privacy’ bill
A state Senate committee acquiesced to First Amendment concerns expressed by the news media and private investigators about a bill that, as passed by the House, would have made it a crime to photograph or record someone who has a “reasonable expectation of privacy.”
Whistleblower information bill passes committee despite privacy breach concerns
The Senate Local Government Committee unanimously endorsed a bill intended to shield state agency whistleblowers, despite fears from officials of several state government departments that it would make confidential information more vulnerable to security breaches.
Colorado House passes ‘a good liberty bill’ that reinforces the right to record police
A new version of a bill that reinforces a civilian’s right to record police passed the Colorado House on a 47-16 vote.
House votes to criminalize the recording of someone who has an ‘expectation of privacy’
Privacy concerns posed by drones and other emerging technologies prompted initial passage in the Colorado House of a bill that would make it a crime to photograph or record someone who has a “reasonable expectation of privacy.”