Government procurement is a $9.5 trillion industry, and supplying goods and services to the government is a core business function for thousands of companies around the world. In the U.S., contracts signed by both parties are usually not published, and are only released if someone files what is known as a freedom-of-information request with the relevant agency.
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Read More… from Opinion: Taking the Mystery Out of Government Contracting
President Barack Obama signed a bill Wednesday that has the potential to curtail prolonged delays in the release of historical White House records.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest announced Wednesday afternoon that the "Presidential and Federal Records Act Amendments of 2014" was among a set of bills Obama approved just prior to the Thanksgiving holiday.
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Read More… from President Barack Obama signs presidential records reform
The Minnehaha County Commission Tuesday appointed a panel to review the county's election procedures, and after some debate commissioners decided the group's meetings should be open to the public.
They didn't have to be, the commission's assistant department head Robert Wilson told commissioners. Because the committee has no statutory authority, its proceedings do not fall under the state open meeting law. Only the final report it delivers to the commission is a public document, Wilson said.
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The Board of Assessors should not have discussed former assessor John Speidel’s employment the way it did in an April 7 executive session, a state office has found, calling it a “serious violation of the Open Meeting Law.”
Board members should have given 48 hours notice before discussing Speidel’s performance and should have allowed Speidel to be present at the meeting if he chose to be, according to the state Attorney General’s Division of Open Government.
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Read More… from State says Arlington Board of Assessors violated Open Meeting Law
The District of Columbia’s Open Government Advisory Group may be only a month old but the 15-member group has already established bylaws and a working outline of short- and midterm projects for boosting transparency and accountability.
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Read More… from Washington D.C. Marks First Open-Government Advisory Meeting
In 1975, the Connecticut General Assembly unanimously approved the creation of the state’s Freedom of Information Act to fight secrecy in government. But for the recent election season, only 10 percent of candidates for state office signed a pledge to oppose weakening the law.
Of the 38 candidates who signed the pledge, 24 did not win election. Leaving 14 officials, including Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who said they will bring a commitment to the Freedom of Information Act and public debate when they are sworn into office in January.
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Advocates for government transparency still have a fight ahead over the state's Freedom of Information Act. That's despite a temporary reprieve yesterday.
Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie, of Chicago, caught transparency advocates off guard last week, with just a handful of days remaining in the legislative session. She introduced a plan that would make it harder for members of the public to obtain government information. It would also make it harder for citizens to recover legal fees when governments illegally withhold documents.
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A nonprofit group that works to ensure Pennsylvanians have full access to government records and proceedings has a new leader.
The Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition announced Tuesday that attorney Corinna Vecsey Wilson will take over as executive director.
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Read More… from Pa. Freedom of Information group gets new director
In Florida we pride ourselves on our policy of government in the sunshine. We expect all aspects of lawmaking and enforcement to be transparent so voters can see and participate in our democratic process and have access to relevant information to hold elected officials accountable.
Most governors have honored this commitment to open government and have tried to follow the spirit of the law.
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Read More… from Editorial: a cloud over Florida’s Sunshine Laws
Even as an Olympia open meetings advocate posted a win in federal court, the ports of Tacoma and Seattle once again will meet behind closed doors Wednesday (Dec. 3) to discuss their proposed operating alliance.
U.S. District Judge James L. Robart ruled late last week that federal court was the wrong forum in which to decide whether the two port commissions violated the state’s Open Meetings Act. At issue are a series of private meetings the two port commissions held jointly to discuss a possible alliance.
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Read More… from Federal court judge rules against ports in suit over open meetings
