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April 14, 2010 by
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It’s easy to see some of the benefits of government transparency. Of course, sunshine is the best disinfectant when it comes to corruption, as Louisiana Senator Robert Adley noted in a topic we covered yesterday, . It is also a great solution for budgetary problems: public scrutiny is a great way to filter out the state spending we need, from the state spending we need
Today in the , however, the implications of a lack of transparency can be deadlier. The article details how the to a citezenry still rocked by the recent explosion that killed 29 miners at a Massey Energy mine in West Virginia.
The Post goes on to critique the government for not releasing those notes until after people died. Had they been, journalists would have picked up on the history of shoddy standards and fines the mine had to pay as fines for breaking rules.
It is never too late to start opening up government. shows that West Virginia deserves increased attention in matters of transparency. An overwhelming amount of items we check for in our are marked with a red “x”, indicating that the government has failed to disclose a key piece of information.
Of course, this seems like a meaningless step when compared with the type of information that was left private in the West Virginia case. But having more open websites would show citizens that their governments are ready to collaborate.
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April 13, 2010 by
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Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana is a guy, but you wouldn’t know that from speaking to some transparency advocates.
Jindal certainly started off in the right foot. He signed an executive order and sponsored a state law that gave the state of Louisiana a transparency website, the , known as LATRACT. Jindal’s office was also responsible for the Legislature passing legislation that has in the past two years opened up more of the government, including the governor’s office.
Or maybe it hasn’t. Because several Republican senators , when the spirit of open records laws presumes openness. These senators have proposed bills that would lessen Jindal’s control over records, which they see as a practice that encourages secrecy.
One senator, , has been very vocal in disagreeing with the governor on his transparency record. The senator has stated “The ranks at the top in disclosure, which I am proud of. The executive branch in Louisiana ranks dead last.” The senator also said transparency is important because secrecy is often an element in corruption but “sunshine is the best disinfectant.”
Jindal certainly had his heart in the right place with his vocal support of transparency, and the efforts he has undertaken to make other government offices meet high transparency standards. However, with charges of secrecy sprouting up again and with , , , , , ,
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April 8, 2010 by
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I’m happy to announce that has upgraded their website. They’re now posting video’s of their meetings, publishing public records and may be posting their contracts in the near future.
The County went from having a “C” transparency grade to a “B” this week, and I get the feeling we’ll see an “A” grade soon enough.
Has your local website started to government data? If so, let us at Sunshine Review know about it!
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April 7, 2010 by
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At Sunshine Review, we’re working on gathering information on . These are groups that government officials belong to. Governments pay for membership, and in return, the associations provide a wide range of services.
One of these services is . We use the broad definition of lobbying at Sunshine Review, basically taking it to mean an ocassion when you try to persuade someone to see it your way. The is an interesting case of this. The League represents the interests of its members, including mayors, aldermen, president and trustees, or town councils. And it is quite successsful in doing so.
For example, the , has proposed a budget plan that aims to solve some of issues. The plan consists of an increase in the income tax, and a decrease in the amount of tax receipts that municipalities would see.
The IML has faced this challenge before. In 2003, the midst of severe revenue shortage, the Illinois Municipal League successfully that would lessen the amount allotted to municipalities and counties to less than the 10% precedent of total income tax revenue. The IML won that fight, and the proposed cut was defeated.
The IML is approaching the current proposed cuts in at least two ways. It is directly petitioning its members to . It is also providing data on the per capita difference between what municipalities receive now and what they would be receiving. Turns out, municipalities would lose more than $20 a head. This is a subtle, but clear indication of where the association stands.
This all gets a little confusing when you think about it, especially since private citizens are completely excluded from the process. Cities are lobbying legislators to lobby the governor. It seems like an insulated, circular process where the people funding the activities are completely excluded and left in the dark.
Of course, the solution to darkness is always more light. It will be interesting to see how the will influence other states. The Illinois Municipal League has opposed improvements to the before, so it is not evident that they would willing give information willingly. However, holding the IML to the IL FOIA would be a great and easy way to include citizens in the activities that they are funding. We look forward to that day.
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April 6, 2010 by
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Tomorrow Federal Agencies will be opening up their some of their data to the public. According to cheap lipitor
On April 7, agencies will issue plans to integrate technology into the work of collaborating with other organizations, engaging the public and publishing government information. The Office of Management and Budget will announce clarifications and changes to rules critics say have impeded such efforts. They include online rule-making guidelines, a ban on tracking Web site user behavior and time-intensive procedures for obtaining permission to collect citizen information. In addition, OMB will order agencies to report spending details on subcontracts, after receiving flak from Congress and federal auditors for not tracking all federal awards on a mandated Web site called .
Already some activists are saying that the move is more for show than a step towards an open government. has voiced the following concerns about the initiative:
- Tenuous links to the agency’s strategic objectives (although they were made available as an annex)
- No mention of how success on any aspect of openness (transparency, participation, collaboration) would be measured
- Unclear distinction between government-wide initiatives and tools, and those that are specific to the agency
- No definition of “high-value” for data set and how to prioritize various open initiatives
- No link with social media strategy and no explicit of employees’ engagement on external social networks.
I’m choosing to be optimistic about it. I figure whatever mess ups we observe at a Federal level will mean an easeir transition to open government for state agencies. I mean, that is part of the plan right?
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April 5, 2010 by
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When it comes to FOIA, the Freedom of Information Act, we’d like to think that there’s not such thing as “too much.” Which is why its great news to hear that the that disclose what banks are seeking help from the banking system.
The Fed had argued making that knowledge public would stigmatize borrowers and thus discourage banks in distress from seeking help. A three-judge panel of the appeals court unanimously rejected that argument, stating FOIA “sets forth no basis for the exemption the Board asks us to read into it.” There’s no part of FOIA that allows information to be withheld in order for a bank to save face.
Senator Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, stated “This money does not belong to the Federal Reserve. It belongs to the American people, and the American people have a right to know where more than $2 trillion of their money has gone.” A lovely justification for more information.
Another case of open government is in , where the state FOIA law is being challenged. is that allows public employee evaluation records (which serve the basis for a suspension or termination) to be released. The Attorney General’s office has come out in support of the provision, stating “there is no reason to doubt that the constitutionality of the challenged statute will be fully and completely defended.”
Still, more information is not always justifiable. Recently, the , which apparently acted a little too transparently. The exemption was based on protecting trade secrets and privileged commercial or financial information. With becoming an issue of some concern, it may be ok for governments to be strict about what it will not disclose. And FOIA isn’t always the only, , source of information.
Sunshine Review has information about , and we have also started #FOIAchat Friday on Twitter, every Friday at 2 pm EST. Join the conversation!
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April 2, 2010 by
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We always like to encourage citizens to get angry and demand the information that is due to them, because the government will hardly ever . Usually, citizens have more at stake in demanding information than public officials, who often see open records and open meetings laws as burdens.
In and around Vermont, however, public officials stepped up to the plate to make government open.
When the (NRC) scheduled a closed-door meeting with public officials to discuss the recent safety problems at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in New Hampshire, it was congressional leaders in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont who sent letters and made calls to NRC Chairman Gregory Jaczko, expressing and asking him to consider making the meeting open. Vermont officials expressed their concerns, as well. Attorney General Deb Markowitz called plans for the closed meeting “legally questionable and ethically repugnant,” given it dealt with public health issues. Senators Bernard Sanders Patrick Leahy and Representative Peter F. Welch, issued a joint statement saying they were “committed to open and transparent government and to honoring both the letter and spirit of Vermont’s open meeting laws,” and urged the commission chairman to move the meeting back to Vermont and comply fully with Vermont’s open government law. “Avoiding Vermont’s open meeting laws by holding this meeting in New Hampshire will only add to the growing public skepticism about the handling of oversight at Vermont Yankee, and could curtail participation from Vermont officials,” they wrote.
The congressmens suspicions are well founded, as Vermont citizens do not have the most positive view of the openness of their government. An editorial appearing in the Burlington Free Press makes the charges that :
* Too many exceptions to the and , , , , , , ,
Sunshine Review found the to be very illuminating. If as many as 39 out of 5,000 websites were able to meet our criteria…perhaps we’re making this too easy for them. Our organization has decided it’s time to address other vital sections of transparency and are adding five new items to our .
What ridiculous demand would you add to the checklist?