National Freedom of Information Coalition
Protecting Your Right to Open Government

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Posts by NFOIC

Thomas Peele Watchdog Column: Waiting for transparency from Legislature? Don’t hold your breath

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There is the goose, of course, but there's also the gander, an old clichÈ goes: What's good for one ought to be the same for the other. But let's not confuse them when discussing the duplicity of California's Legislature when it comes to transparency.

The Legislature, of course, passes laws that affect other branches of government as well as itself. As the state struggles with the archaic Public Records Act (PRA), with its dozens of exemptions, weak disclosure deadlines and lack of enforcement, lawmakers only nibble around its edges.

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Preserve transparency: Ohio Supreme Court can ensure that government operates openly

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Open-meetings laws are effective only if they actually compel public entities to conduct public business in public. That clearly is the intent, and the Olentangy school board appears to have violated the intent of the law by discussing what should have been public matters through private emails.

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From the Editor: Most candidates agree SD needs more openness

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Open government is a constant theme in South Dakota, for both good strides and glaring omissions.

Last month, the South Dakota Newspaper Association sent open government surveys to all legislative and statewide candidates, except those running for U.S. House and Senate. Of 182 surveys sent, about 105 were returned, according to the association.

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Ebola tracking system for Sierra Leone offered by IBM

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It has launched a system which allows citizens to report Ebola-related issues and government, health agencies and others to keep track of the disease. Citizens can use SMS or voice calls that are location-specific. The data will then be analysed to identify correlations and highlight issues.

The system is easy for citizens to use
Already, regions with growing numbers of suspected Ebola cases have been pinpointed and the delivery of urgent supplies such as soap and electricity have been sped up.

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Freedom of the press in the UK? Not for student newspapers

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As the editor of Plymouth Universityís student union paper, the Knowledge, Katie French felt she had a duty to hold her university to account. But four weeks before the deadline for her final-year dissertation she was threatened with expulsion when she printed a story that made Plymouth look bad.

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Opinion: Transparency in government a must

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Since first taking office more than 30 years ago, Iíve held a firm belief that government should be conducted in an open and transparent manner. Government officials are rightly held to a higher standard of scrutiny and accountability, and that includes being truthful and forthcoming to the men and women theyíve been elected to serve.

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University Libraries celebrates Open Access Week

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Open Access to scholarly research for everyone sounds like a great idea. For libraries, open access means being able to buy more scholarly journals – critical to students and faculty who want to do research. The general public also benefits by having improved availability of information. For publishers, however, the question of open access goes right to their bottom line.

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NJ Governor Christie Blocks Release Of Pay-To-Play Probe Of Charlie Baker, Massachusetts GOP Nominee

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As chairman of the Republican Governors Association, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has helped Charlie Baker with millions of dollars worth of ads supporting his Massachusetts gubernatorial campaign. But that's not the only way he may be boosting the GOP candidate in the final weeks of a close election: Christie officials are blocking the release of the findings of New Jersey's pay-to-play investigation into Baker.

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Technology and data analytics should transform municipal government, professors say

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Rarely is the term "city hall" considered synonymous with the words "innovation" or "efficiency." Too often, the public image of municipal government is of a static bureaucracy staffed with disinterested clock-watchers focused on petty tasks and arcane processes.

But two Harvard authorities on government and technology say it doesn't have to be that way.

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