A few items selected from many of interest recently (updated Monday).
Obama Justice Department Battles Against FOIA
The Obama administration wants to make it tougher for Americans to obtain government records by offering agencies more opportunities to deny Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests.
The Department of Justice has proposed 15 rule changes to the FOIA, which collectively represent a “huge step back for transparency,” says the Sunlight Foundation.
Visit Govinthelab.com for the rest.
Voting Information Project
The Voting Information Project (VIP) offers cutting edge technology tools to provide voters with access to customized election information to help them navigate the voting process and cast an informed vote. VIP works with election officials across the nation to ensure this information is official and reliable.
VIP uses an open format to make data available and accessible, bringing 21st century technology to our elections and ensuring that all Americans have the opportunity to cast an informed vote.
Visit Votinginfoproject.org for the rest.
Illinois FOIA/OMA Mandatory Training
A new law passed in Illinois requires that all of those elected and appointed members of a public body who are such members of a public body on January 1, 2012, to take electronic FOIA/OMA training by January 1, 2013. All of those who are elected or appointed after January 1, 2012, have 90-days to complete the training.
Visit Illinois Municipal League for the rest.
Making the Open Government Partnership Work
In this special in-depth report, Matt Rosenberg (founder and editor of Public Data Ferret) looks at what it will take for the efforts of the recently formed global Open Government Partnership to succeed, taking in initiatives from across the globe and addressing their context-specific challenges and potentials.
Visit Open Knowledge Foundation Blog for the rest.
Tribune Reporters Discuss Use of FOI in Fugitive Story
To identify local fugitives, Chicago Tribune reporters created a database that drew on multiple sources of federal and local records, as well as scores of interviews with law enforcement officials, relatives of suspects and victims, and witnesses to the crimes.
Visit Chicago Tribune for the rest.