Hillsborough County Attorney Chip Fletcher has told county commissioners they don’t need to retain many of their work-related emails and text messages, even though he acknowledges many of the communications may be considered public records under the state’s Sunshine Laws.
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Read More… from County attorney in Florida advises officials on deleting records
A state lawmaker wants to stop what he calls “snitching culture.” This is when community members are discouraged from talking to the police. But, one Sunshine Law group is concerned because the bill would block a witness’ information from the public.
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Read More… from Florida lawmaker wants to stop ‘snitching culture’
Veterans across the country are demanding answers after being exposed to toxic water for nearly three decades.
On Monday, three veterans groups filed a Freedom Of Information Act requesting records that the Department of Veterans Affairs has long withheld in regards to the Camp Lejeune Subject Matter Expert Program.
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Read More… from Veterans groups file FOIA requesting records on Camp Lejeune toxic water
The McHenry County Board is likely to approve a six-figure settlement with an Algonquin man who sued the sheriff's office over an open records violation.
The settlement awards $104,402.96 to First Electric Newspaper Publisher Pete Gonigam, who sued the sheriff's office after it refused to turn over documents pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act.
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Read More… from Illinois county to approve settlement in FOIA violation
Dueling proposals to overhaul the procurement process in Washington, D.C., are creating friction between the city council and Mayor Muriel Bowser’s administration.
The council is currently reviewing a pair of bills focused on procurement, but each contains very different provisions that could have major implications for hefty IT contracts and the city’s public database of procurement documents.
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Read More… from D.C. mayor, city council battle over transparency in procurement reform
Law enforcement leaders across Idaho are considering whether to seek new laws detailing how they collect and retain video footage and who gets access to the images.
The use of body cameras, dash cameras and jail security cameras means police and sheriff departments nationwide are gathering more data than ever and receiving more public records requests for the images. Idaho law requires that the videos be stored for two years, but that amount of digital storage can get expensive for the agencies.
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Read More… from Idaho law enforcement agencies wrestle with data collection
Over the past year, the openness community has joined privacy and civil liberties groups in fighting the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA), legislation that undermines transparency and enhances surveillance while doing little to improve the government’s ability to combat cyber threats.
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Read More… from New Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act being drafted in secret
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 as a strong example of transparency to state agencies.
Arlington officials do an excellent job of managing the local media, no doubt supplying all the information they wish to make public. But when it comes to responding to records requests from Arlington citizens, their performance is decidedly mixed.
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Read More… from Commentary: Arlington lacking in government transparency
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 information is “over the top” and likely illegal.
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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 Washingtonians trying to figure how much state revenue is given up through myriad tax breaks.
Some of these tax breaks are important for economic development. But the public and lawmakers must know their costs to decide if they’re worthwhile investments.
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Read More… from Editorial: What’s in a tax break? Washingtonians should know
