Lawyers debate application of Open Meetings Act in appeal arguments

From Detroit News:

Lansing—The state Court of Appeals on Thursday heard oral arguments in four cases in which lower courts ruled financial review teams appointed under Public Act 4 violated the Open Meetings Act.

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SC House approves strengthening open records law

From Aiken Standard:

COLUMBIA, S.C.—The South Carolina House approved a bill Thursday strengthening the state's open records law.

The bill approved 101-1 a bill barring public agencies, governments and school districts from charging excessive fees for public records and requiring them to respond more quickly. It also removes legislators' exemption from the law.

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Governor launches a program to push staff emails online

From Miami Herald:

Gov. Rick Scott launched a new open records program Thursday dubbed "Project Sunburst," designed to give the public — and the media — access to the emails to and from the governor and 11 top staff within seven days of writing them.

At a news conference at the Capitol, the governor touted the effort as a great leap forward.

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New open records law brings confusion, changes

From Dalton Daily Citizen:

For almost eight years, the Whitfield County Board of Commissioners has assigned liaisons to most county departments to help manage the departments and keep the rest of the board members up to date on county projects. But Board of Commissioners Chairman Mike Babb says changes in the state’s open records law may lead the board to abolish any formal liaisons.

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Attorney General’s Office Talks Open Records; Low Attendance from School Board

From 41NBC.com:

MACON—Today, the Bibb County community and the school board got a first hand lesson about Georgia's Open Records and Open Meetings Laws.

Senior Assistant Attorney General Stefan Ritter came down to educate the school board.

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Open records advocates fear information roadblocks

From Honolulu Star-Advertiser:

The state Office of Information Practices hopes a bill that would grant government agencies a new right to appeal open records decisions in court would give its orders more legal clout, yet open government advocates warn that it would delay public access to information.

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Branstad Expected to Sign Open Records Law Thursday

From KCRG-TV9:

DES MOINES—Gov. Terry Branstad says he will sign a bill into law, changing the state's open meetings and records laws and creating a nine-member Iowa Public Information Board.

Branstad scheduled a signing ceremony for Thursday afternoon.

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2012 International Open Government Data Conference

From Data.gov:

Join open data and open government leaders from around the world for three days of speakers, panels, and collaboration on international open government data.  The conference will be organized around two tracks: policy and technology.

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Attorney General Reviews Possible Meeting Violation

From Journal-topics.com:

The Illinois Attorney General is looking into whether or not the village of Palatine violated provisions of the Open Meetings Act (OMA) by failing to provide proper notice of a Mar. 15 joint district council advisory meeting at the new police headquarters with councilmen Kollin Kozlowski (5th) and Brad Helms (6th).

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ACLU, Others File FOIA Request with Immigration Agency

From PBA.org:

The Georgia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, along with some immigrants’ rights groups, has filed a “Freedom of Information Act” request with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The request asks for information related to two immigration enforcement programs in Georgia. Azadeh Shashahani, with the Georgia ACLU, says they want information about Secure Communities and 287 (g). 

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