There is an “invasion.” Criminal gang activity is “exponentially increasing.” Police are “on the front lines.” There are “lives at stake.” It’d be understandable if you thought these militaristic and hysterical statements were describing a large and particularly dangerous Third World city. Apparently, according to Senator John Cosgrove, they describe Chesapeake, Virginia. (Not exactly the tourism ad most cities would want, but maybe that’s a problem for another day.) What bill do you think prompted these statements? No, it wasn’t a bill to address a need for new cross-jurisdictional gang task forces, to provide more money for law enforcement, or to take any other step to combat the supposed “invasion of localities.” It was Cosgrove’s SB1402, which would add a “very small exception” to FOIA, amending Va. Code § 2.2-3711(A)(19) to authorize a public body to hold a closed meeting for “consultation with or briefings by staff members, legal counsel, or law-enforcement or emergency service officials concerning criminal street gang-related activities.” You heard correctly.
According to Cosgrove, lives are at stake because FOIA doesn’t let police talk to Chesapeake City Council members behind closed doors about gang activities.
Open Virginia Law
Meanwhile, in Harrisonburg: A joint effort of the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office and Rockingham County Parks and Recreation Department will seek to
enlighten the community on gangs and what signs to look for in children who may show interest in joining one.
Daily News Record
In sports, everyone has to play by the same rules. It wouldn't make for a fair competition if one team was subjected to harsher scrutiny than the other or if individual players were held to different standards of conduct. We expect the same approach from state government when it comes to finding a balance between what electric monopolies say they need and the interests of consumers in receiving economical and reliable power. One side shouldn't be allowed to skirt the rules or duck regulations simply because it's more influential and decides to exert itself. Yet, with legislation now moving through the General Assembly, that's precisely what lawmakers would allow Dominion Virginia Power to do. The bill would allow the company to avoid the biannual state review of its finances and would freeze the base rate it charges customers for eight years. If power companies need relief in light of oppressive and expensive federal regulations, then let lawmakers address that through legislation — and cover all utilities. But gutting the SCC review process creates more problems and is itself not a solution.
Daily Press
The surprise announcement this afternoon that Del. Ed Scott, R-Madison, would not seek re-election in order to focus on his family and business highlighted what is best and what is most problematic about Virginia’s citizen legislature, Del. Dave Albo, R-Fairfax, said in a speech on the House floor. “I love the citizen legislature,” Albo said. “It is fantastic.” “It works because there’s someone here like everyone in Virginia,” he went on to say, pointing to lawmakers of every age, race, nationality, gender and career field. But, he said, serving can also put a tremendous amount of pressure on legislators worrying about how to serve and still pay their mortgages and raise their children. Delegates are paid $17,640 a year and are considered part-time, convening at the beginning of every year for 30- and 60-day legislative sessions. Albo said he didn’t know what the solution may be, but “it’s a shame to lose another member of the ‘stressed out, got to make my house payment’ club.”
Virginian-Pilot
On Jan. 20, the Charlottesville City Council unanimously approved a plan to appoint a University student liaison. The move to create this new student position was spearheaded by second-year student John Connolly, my colleague in the Opinion section who is also the co-chair of the Student Council’s Community Affairs Committee. In conjunction with City Councilor Bob Fenwick, he campaigned for the position in hopes to further engage University students with local government. While the specific duties and responsibilities of this new position are still in flux, its conception signals a critical shift in the agenda of the Student Council and a noteworthy step towards further interaction with Charlottesville residents and officials. It has always seemed strange to me that University students could claim to “live” in Charlottesville and yet do very little to earn their citizenship.
Ashley Spinks, Cavalier Daily
Last week Kansans learned that the governor’s draft of a two-year state budget was shared with lobbyists and other outsiders as well as top administration officials in December via private e-mail accounts. Yet with that revelation still fresh in their minds, 86 GOP Kansas House members declined Monday to guard against official subterfuge in the future. Rep. Jim Ward, D-Wichita, proposed considering private communications by public officials to be open records when a substantial public interest can be shown. If his amendment was not the answer, legislators can still stand up for openness at the highest levels of state government by otherwise passing legislation to slam shut this obvious loophole in the Kansas Open Records Act. The weak explanations offered by the Brownback administration – that the use of private e-mail addresses for the budget draft was not meant to skirt KORA, but because many staff members were at home for the holidays – are beside the point. Kansans should be able to see and scrutinize their government, and have confidence that open-records laws are keeping up with technology. Those doing the public’s business should not be able to hide their work by simply clicking from a government to a private e-mail account or switching to a different computer or other device.
Witchita Eagle