From First Amendment Coalition:
In a big victory for open government, a Superior Court judge in San Jose has ruled that the state’s Public Records Act applies to government officials’ emails and texts about government business–EVEN IF those messages are sent or received using the officials’ private email or text accounts, rather than accounts belonging to the government.
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Read More… from Peter Scheer: Judge plugs “private email” loophole in CA public records law
From Gainesville.com:
Most people who are used to sending text messages fire them off without a second thought.
But for public officials, the technology brings more than just convenient communication. It also raises concerns and possible conflicts between personal privacy and open records laws.
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Read More… from Text messages as public records: A new set of issues
From D.C. Open Government Coalition:
Celebrating Sunshine Week 2013, the D.C. Open Government Coalition will present its second annual “D.C. Open Government Summit” Wednesday, March 13.
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Read More… from NFOIC’s State FOIA Friday for February 15, 2013
Council changes rules, issues new interpretation to settle FOIA case
D.C. Councilmembers and staff cannot avoid the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) by doing business on personal, rather than government, email accounts, the Council of the District of Columbia agreed [January 23] in settling a lawsuit brought by the D.C. Open Government Coalition.
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Position piece from New Mexico Foundation for Open Government's executive director Gwyneth Doland:
It has long been our understanding that a public record is a public record no matter where it is physically located—whether a report sits in a filing cabinet in the office or in an employee’s briefcase at home, for example.
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Read More… from NMFOG urges public officials to use official email accounts
