NFOIC – Page 216 – National Freedom of Information Coalition

Colorado Senator Kefalas to look at public records access

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State Sen. John Kefalas, D-Fort Collins, is looking at expanding Colorado open records law to include electronic records.

Kefalas said the legislative fix could be simple, provided the political will is there. The nascent proposal, as Kefalas described it at a Saturday coffee-with-constituents meeting, would make explicit that public records available in digital form must be delivered that way. No bill has been formally drafted yet. Continue…

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Editorial: Is The Freedom Of Information Act Stifling Intellectual Freedom?

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Have you heard of Kevin Folta? He’s a professor at the University of Florida and the lead actor in an ongoing set piece pitching (some) journalists against (some) scientists. They’re arguing over four letters that form the core of transparency about what our government is up to: FOIA, or Freedom of Information Act, the federal version of which turns 50 next year.

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Wyoming voters may decide if privacy, opengov should be added to Constitution

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Lawmakers say they want voters to decide if privacy and open-government protections should be added to Wyoming's Constitution.

The Joint Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Interim Committee voted unanimously Wednesday to support a bill that would put the proposed constitutional changes on the 2016 general election ballot.

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California launches new open data portal

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California has launched a new open data portal that details the state’s outstanding $1.5 trillion in debt. The site will allow residents to track proposed and issued debt, cost of issuance, and bond and tax election results. The portal is the latest entrant in a plethora of fragmented open data portals launched across the various arms of California government.

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FOIA update: Virginia teachers seek change on test data law

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Virginia teachers will seek new assurances in the coming legislative session that the class-by-class student test scores used in teacher evaluations aren't released to the public.

The Virginia Education Association also will push for a change in state law to ensure teachers are given notice when anyone requests information from their personnel files, the group's attorney told the state's Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council Wednesday.

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Evans police body camera footage used to confirm excessive force complaint

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Last month, Evans police Chief Rick Brandt participated in a panel discussion about body-worn cameras and publicly revealed an incident some chiefs might prefer to sweep under the rug.

In July, following the arrest of a man suspected of being involved in a fight at a house party, Brandt fired one of his officers after camera footage confirmed he had used excessive force while placing the man into custody.

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Auditor: Public trust at stake as Oregon agencies bungle records requests

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Oregon government agencies may be jeopardizing public trust with slow responses to more complex public records requests and inconsistent use of exemptions, according to a state audit report released Tuesday.

The audit is part of the fallout from an influence peddling scandal involving Gov. John Kitzhaber and First Lady Cylvia Hayes. Auditors recommended that the state create an ombudsman position to “serve as an intermediary between the public and state agencies on complex records requests.”

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Lack of transparency keeps Colorado in the dark about police misbehavior

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Tuesday, Nov. 24 marks the first anniversary of a grand jury's failure to indict Officer Darren Wilson in the August 2014 shooting death of black teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.

When Wilson was cleared by the grand jury, riots broke out in Ferguson and elsewhere, and the Black Lives Matter movement was born, challenging cities across the country to examine policies pertaining to the use of excessive force by their police departments.

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EDITORIAL: Cyber defense bill in Florida must balance security, transparency

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From Social Security numbers to financial information and health records, some of the most sensitive parts of our personal lives are stored on state web servers.

A security breach that exposes this information can leave us vulnerable to identity theft. It also could lead to the modification or destruction of personal data that lets us get a driver's license or business permit, for example.

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AG says Chicago police shooting video should have been made public

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The Chicago Police Department violated the state's Freedom of Information Act by refusing to release a video of a white police officer fatally shooting an African-American teen to a newspaper, according to a recent opinion from the Illinois Attorney General's Office.

The five-page ruling on Nov. 6 was made public one day before a Cook County judge is scheduled to decide whether to make public the police car dashboard video of Laquan McDonald's shooting.

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Author: NFOIC

Posts by NFOIC

Colorado Senator Kefalas to look at public records access

Editorial: Is The Freedom Of Information Act Stifling Intellectual Freedom?

Wyoming voters may decide if privacy, opengov should be added to Constitution

California launches new open data portal

FOIA update: Virginia teachers seek change on test data law

Evans police body camera footage used to confirm excessive force complaint

Auditor: Public trust at stake as Oregon agencies bungle records requests

Lack of transparency keeps Colorado in the dark about police misbehavior

EDITORIAL: Cyber defense bill in Florida must balance security, transparency

AG says Chicago police shooting video should have been made public