Florida – Page 9 – National Freedom of Information Coalition

FBI accused of withholding information in congressional candidate Stearns probe

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The congressional candidate who accused former Congressman Cliff Stearns of attempting to bribe him to bail on an election now accuses the FBI of taking a dive in revealing the truth about his allegation.

In court records filed last week, Jimmy Jett, who challenged Stearns in the 2012 Republican primary for Florida's redrawn 3rd Congressional District, maintains that the FBI was 'highly generalized and overly broad' in its rationale for withholding information its agents compiled during the investigation.

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Florida colleges duck public records law via corporations

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The business of Florida's 12 public universities is supposed to be public like any other state agency. Salaries, contracts, policies and other university business records are supposed to be subject to Florida's expansive Sunshine Law, which mandates that most government actions be open to scrutiny.

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Advocate: Sunshine serves public: Front & Center

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Opinion: Little agency a strong defender of open government

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Who are you going to call? A county commissioner refuses to let you speak at a public meeting. Who are you going to call?

A local sheriff refuses to give you access to public records. Who are you going to call?

The city is willing to give you the public records you requested, but it wants to charge you an exorbitant amount of money for the privilege. Who are you going to call?

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GOP Redistricting Docs Go Before The Florida Supreme Court

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A legal challenge over whether documents related to the Florida Legislature's 2012 effort to redraw the state's congressional districts can be made public is now before the state's Supreme Court justices. The first hearing on the matter began Friday.

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Florida Supreme Court holds testy hearing on secret evidence

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A bitter dispute pitting Republican political consultants against groups who challenged Florida's congressional map spilled out in front of the state's highest court on Friday.

The Supreme Court has been asked to decide whether or not secret evidence should have been used during a landmark redistricting trial. The evidence, which included 31 pages of emails and documents, was reviewed by the judge but has not been made public.

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Government Websites in 5 Cities and Counties Win Vision Internet “What’s Next” Awards for Online Innovation

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Vision Internet, innovators in online government, today announced the winners of its inaugural “What’s Next” Awards competition, which recognizes local government websites for excellence in five categories: transparency, citizen engagement, online innovation, green gov and visual impact.

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Judge Rules Florida Legislature Gerrymandered U.S. House Districts

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A Florida circuit court judge ruled the state legislature’s redistricting of U.S. congressional seats violated the Florida Constitution.

Judge Terry P. Lewis of the Second Circuit Court in Tallahassee ruled the boundaries drawn by Florida’s legislature amounted to a “secret, organized campaign to subvert the supposedly open and transparent redistricting process.”

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Florida city posts all email online

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In Gainesville, Fla., it doesn’t take a Freedom of Information request to find out what city officials are chattering about on email. One merely has to go online and read them.

That city recently began posting email correspondence about public business to and from the mayor and the city commissioners. There may be other localities doing it as well, but this is the first one that’s been brought to my attention.

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Editorial: Lawsuit shows how open government was a joke during (FL) redistricting

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Sometimes it takes a simple redistricting lawsuit to show us the funny side of the state Capitol. Redistricting, the once-a-decade process of redrawing congressional and legislative boundaries, isn’t something that’s the stuff of big laughs.

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