A Saginaw County judge has approved a motion from the Michigan Attorney General's Office allowing the state agency to get involved in a case about the release of the names of approximately 100 Oakley Police Department reserve police officers.
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Tag: open records
Editorial: Presuming a more open U.S. government
The Freedom of Information Act, first enacted in 1966, allows the public to see how their government functions — and fails to function — by providing access to official records. In fiscal year 2013, government agencies released some or all of the information sought in 440,997 requests.
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How Louisiana health agency is keeping its potential budget cuts secret
The state health agency is using a law backed by the Jindal administration to conceal its recommendations for $600 million to $700 million in budget cuts.
State Department of Health and Hospitals officials said the public will know where the reductions will be made on Feb. 27, when Gov. Bobby Jindal’s office submits the proposed state budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
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Opinion: Who is good at open government? Who is bad?
People say they want government to run more efficiently, like a business. What happens when governments are tested the way businesses are?
Mystery shopping is part of the business world. Customers secretly test a business as mystery shoppers, then grade the results.
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Virginia attorney general says public can get mug shots, but not from state database
The state attorney general has issued an opinion clarifying how the public can access mug shots of people who have been arrested – an issue raised by the Daily Press last fall when it took months of requests to different agences to obtain a booking photo of a former police chief.
In the opinion, released earlier this month, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring says local law enforcement agencies must release mug shots from arrests if they have them.
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Our Opinion: Keep partisanship out of Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records
Gov. Tom Wolf pledged to be an “unconventional leader,” but one of his first actions in office smacks of an all-too-familiar brand of politics.
He removed the executive director of the Office of Open Records, firing him with Donald Trump-like flair: swiftly and seemingly with little justification.
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Open government advocate urges Wolf to reconsider firing
A leading advocate of open government is calling on Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf to reconsider his firing of his predecessor’s appointee as director of Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records.
The Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition said today that Mr. Wolf’s decision last week to oust Erik Arneson and appoint an acting director will have a long-term, negative impact on its integrity. Mr. Arneson was appointed by Republican Gov. Tom Corbett a week before he left office.
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Opinion: Not all government records are open to the public
Three police cars scream down your street and officers stay in your neighbor's home for an hour before leaving.
You want to know what happened, but you don't want to ask the neighbor.
A Freedom of Information Act request for the police report should answer your question, right? Continue>>>
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A how-to guide to Michigan’s Freedom of Information Act
Ever wonder how much your child's teacher earns? Or how much the city spent to repave your street? Or whether your neighbor has ever been cited for not keeping up his property?
The answers to these questions are found in records owned by the public, which are supposed to be there for the asking. But accessing those records is often more difficult than it needs to be.
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Editorial: Newport News erects obstacles to access by imposing excessive costs for documents
The Tech Center at Oyster Point development was promoted as a critical economic development initiative with the potential to create a good many jobs. Its construction will radically change one of the most prominent intersections in Newport News. And ushering it to completion will require a substantial public investment by city taxpayers.
The newspaper continues to ask questions about the project and expects Newport News officials to be open and transparent in response.
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