National Freedom of Information Coalition
Protecting Your Right to Open Government

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Tenn. attorney general’s ruling on public records relevant in school superintendent search

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Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery III served up a timely reminder last week for the state’s public officials when he issued an opinion that they cannot skirt open-government laws by outsourcing essential governmental functions.

In an advisory opinion issued Friday, Slatery wrote that any records obtained by a third party hired to conduct searches for new schools’ superintendents must be made available for public inspection and its meetings might be subject to the Open Meetings Act.

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New Mexico bill would conceal IDs of applicants for public jobs

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A top Democrat in the state Senate wants to shut off public access to the names and résumés of job applicants at public agencies statewide, a proposal already drawing strong opposition from transparency advocates.

The bill is one of hundreds expected to be debated as the Legislature begins its 60-day session today.

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California’s top court says public may see government’s past legal bills

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The California Supreme Court recently issued a closely split ruling in a case involving whether or not the legal bills from settled suits involving government entities within the state are public information. A member of an advocacy group wonders how the decision will affect taxpayers.

On Dec. 29, the court voted 4-3 that while the bills for long-settled legal matters could be accessed by the public, those invoices relating to current or pending litigation were protected by the purview of attorney-client privilege.

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Chicago: BGA, others force Emanuel to release work-related private emails

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Following a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) filing and lawsuits, Illinois’ Better Government Association (BGA) recently succeeded in forcing Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to release private emails that pertain to city business.

BGA effected a policy change through Cook County court rulings that public officials’ private emails are covered under FOIA.

After a legal tussle lasting over a year that included a lawsuit filed by the Chicago Tribune, the BGA expressed satisfaction with the outcome.

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MuckRock: FBI quietly decides all FOIA requests over 50 pages are “complex”

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Just six months ago, [MuckRock] reported that the FBI had quietly changed their FOIA processing queues without alerting anyone or updating their website. And now, once again, the Bureau has changed their standards for FOIA processing – before a request had to be 2,500 pages or more to be classified as large or complex. Now, without any announcement or update to the Bureau’s website, the number’s down to 51 pages.

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Virginian-Pilot editorial: Be a force for openness in government

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It’s optimistic to believe that this (or really any) legislative session in Virginia will make a turn toward openness and away from punching holes in the law that ensures public access to documents and meetings.

But maybe, just maybe, this could be a session where lawmakers choose to hold the line on those principles and act with deference toward the people’s right to know.

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Philanthropist Craig Newmark Joining the Fight Against “Fake News”

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A $1 million grant from the Craig Newmark Foundation, the charitable organization established by Craigslist Founder Craig Newmark, to the Poynter Institute addresses one of the thornier dilemmas arising from the recent election—how newsrooms should identify and respond to "fake news."

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Ratings agency warns in brief against ‘dramatic expansion’ of Florida’s Sunshine Law

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State regulators and an organization that proposes workers’ compensation coverage rates in Florida defended themselves in pleadings to a state appeals court this week, seeking to overturn a lower court ruling that they had violated open-government laws.

Attorneys for the National Council on Compensation Insurance, or NCCI, submitted their arguments in a brief filed Wednesday with the 1st District Court of Appeal. The state office of Insurance Regulation is also a party to the suit, filed by Miami workers’ compensation attorney James Fee.

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