Illinois Government Transparency Advocates Urge Against Veto Override Of ‘Bad’ FOIA Bill

Government transparency advocates are urging the Illinois General Assembly to opt against overriding Gov. Pat Quinn's recent veto of a bill that would "damage" the state's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
 
The FOIA legislation, HB 3796, is a "step in the wrong direction" that would hurt the public's right to access important government data and information, said Alden Loury, senior policy analyst at the Chicago-based Better Government Association, an independent, non-partisan government watchdog group.

A more open New York government? Maybe next session

Sorry, political junkies: Your chance to tune in to state Assembly committee meetings online died at the end of the legislative session last week.

Yes, that may sound slightly less fun than watching paint dry. But for those interested, a proposal to require webcasts of legislative committee meetings could have offered a new window on how state lawmakers decide which proposals make it to the floor and which never see the light of day. The state Senate already offers such video, but the Assembly does not.

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Editorial: When will PA Legislature let the sunshine in?

It’s become more than apparent since its passage in 1998 that Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act has holes that need to be filled if we are ever to ensure truly open government. Efforts have been made to amend the act and tighten its language, but it seems our Legislature has had more important things to do.

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IL House, Senate seem to handle info requests differently

The campaign of state Rep. TOM CROSS for state treasurer thinks it is not fair that freedom of information requests to the House and Senate have been handled very differently.

The office of the House clerk released hundreds of pages of documents about the 21 years spent by Cross, a Republican from Oswego, in the Illinois House. Among those asking for the documents was ZACH KOUTSKY, campaign manager for state Sen. MIKE FRERICHS, D-Champaign, who is the Democratic candidate for treasurer.

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