National Freedom of Information Coalition
Protecting Your Right to Open Government

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Sunshine Report from the Virginia Coalition for Open Government

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From Virginia Coalition for Open Government:  The May 2013 edition of the Sunshine Report is online with stories about the U.S. Supreme Court's FOIA ruling, a case on cameras in the courtroom, FOIA Council updates and open government news.

In the issue:

U.S. Supreme Court upholds Virginia's citizens-only FOIA limitation
FOIA Council updates
Huguely camera case headed to Virginia Supreme Court
Open government in the news

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Peter Scheer: Real outrage is that surveillance of AP reporters’ phone calls was probably legal

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From the California First Amendment Coalition:  (May 20, 2013) The real outrage about the Justice Department’s use of secret subpoenas for the phone records of Associated Press journalists is that, based on the information that has surfaced to date, it was probably legal.

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DOJ seized phone records for Fox News numbers, reporter’s parents

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From FOX News:  Newly uncovered court documents reveal the Justice Department seized records of several Fox News phone lines as part of a leak investigation — even listing a number that, according to one source, matches the home phone number of a reporter’s parents.

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NFOIC’s State FOIA Friday for May 24, 2013

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We’re sorry we missed our usual State FOIA Friday last week (May 17) but we were otherwise occupied in New Orleans for the annual FOI Summit.

A few state FOIA and local open government news items selected from many of interest that we might or might not have drawn attention to earlier in the week. While you're at it, be sure to check out State FOIA Friday Archives.

 

UW-Madison seeks limits on open records regarding research

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SF sunshine panel applicants sought

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San Francisco’s Sunshine Ordinance Task Force has vacancies for an attorney and a journalist, both of whom must be nominated by the Society of Professional Journalists, Northern California Chapter.

The task force comprises 11 voting and two ex-officio non-voting members. The voting members are appointed by the Board of Supervisors and, under Sunshine Ordinance Sec. 67.30(a), “must have experience and/or demonstrated interest in the issues of citizen access and participation in local government.”

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Chicago school system on FOIA requests: Stonewalling, obfuscation, & paper-shredding

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From techdirt.com:  If you’re a government with something to hide, there are plenty of shady ways to handle Freedom of Information Act requests. You can make sure your organization is legally allowed to carry guns and simply refuse, like the NYPD. […]

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Pornographic email investigation: WIS asks for records, gets $30K bill instead

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From WIS:  FAIRFIELD COUNTY, SC (WIS) – A WIS investigation into allegations that the Fairfield County administrator had disseminated pornography from his tax payer-funded computer has ended with a $29,395 Freedom of Information Act charge.

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Political insider: Gov’s staff emails have scent of ‘skunk works’

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From The Detroit News:  Under state law, the only time the public gets to peek inside the inner workings of the Governor’s Office is when its staffers send emails to employees of other state agencies, which are subject to the Freedom of Information Act.

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