Open government closed, watchdogs shut out
From Project on Government Oversight: With the government shutdown in full swing, you sort of expect these messages, but actually receiving them is still surreal: "Out of Office Reply: Due to the government shutdown, OSC is currently closed. I wi ...
The government shutdown is terrible for transparency
From National Journal: Thursday morning's New York Times starts with a blockbuster story on Obamacare: "A sweeping national effort to extend health coverage to millions of Americans will leave out two-thirds of the poor blacks and single mothers ...
Hearing set for lawsuit seeking release of indictment in JonBenet Ramsey case
From the Daily Camera (Boulder): A hearing for a lawsuit filed by a Daily Camera reporter and a press advocacy group seeking the release of the indictment secretly voted on by the JonBenet Ramsey grand jury in 1999 has been set for 1:30 p.m. Oct. 11. Camera reporter Charlie Brennan and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press filed the lawsuit in Boulder District Court, citing the Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act in an effort to compel Boulder District Attorney Stan Garnett to release the indictment. The Camera reported earlier this year that the grand jury voted to indict ...
FAF Sunshine Report – Volume 3 Fall 2013
From Florida First Amendment Foundation: In this issue -- Petersen appointed to user experience task force State Senate President Don Gaetz (R-Niceville) recently appointed FAF President Barbara Petersen to a special legislative panel assign ...
Oakland, Code for America unveil public records program
From Oakland North: In a push to improve government transparency, Oakland city officials on Tuesday launched RecordTrac, a new program designed by Code for America that allows users to request public records online. read more ...
Editorial: Shining a light in dark corners
From Santa Fe New Mexican: (Oct 1, 2013) A government that works in the dark is little good for citizens. That’s why the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government was formed back in 1989. Its purpose is simple: to keep the light shining on the actions of public officials who might prefer to do business behind closed doors. [. . .] read more ...
Reporters Committee, CFOIC ask court to reject James Holmes’ motion to restrict access to pleadings
From Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition: Restricting access to court records in the Aurora movie theater shooting case would “serve no constructive purpose” and significantly impair the public’s understanding of issues o ...
As shutdown commences, federal open government databases go dark or dormant
From NJ.com: As hundreds of thousands of federal workers were sent home amid the first federal government shutdown since the 1990s, so too did many of the databases that provide government transparency and allow researchers to understand the soc ...
Northern Valley parents file open-records suit against district over drug-policy discussions
From NorthJersey.com: A group of parents has sued the Northern Valley Regional Board of Education, claiming it did not comply with state open-records law by providing access to some documentation of official discussion about a random drug-testin ...
State open records expert says city law needs do-over
From The Tennessean: A public records battle between the city of Hendersonville and a group of citizens requesting hundreds of pages of documents has prompted the state to weigh in — on the side of the residents. That means the city will have to reapprove a new records policy. It passed a resolution establishing fees for labor and copying in July, but an opinion from Elisha Hodge of the state’s Office of Open Records Counsel says aldermen must instead pass an ordinance for the changes to become law, as the city charter requires. read more ...
