Come July 1, a lot of new laws will go into effect, proof that the men and women we send to Richmond each year really do accomplish something.
There are some changes to the Freedom of Information Act, but luckily, as compared to some years, the changes are few and do not represent any major policy shifts.
For instance, there are only two new exemptions. There were years when there would be seven to 10 exemptions, so two is pretty good in my book.
There was nothing special about Teresa Sullivan’s firing.
Well, sure, we’re talking about the state’s flagship university, and she was one of the state’s highest paid employees, and she held one of the most coveted jobs in American academia.
But for all that, in the eyes of the Freedom of Information Act’s meeting provisions, President Sullivan was no different from Zoe the city parking attendant.
And the Board of Visitors at Mr. Jefferson’s University was no different from the Town of Podunk or any other local government, regional authority, state board, etc.
Of course an email is not a meeting. It’s mail. Electronic mail. It’s no different from sending your friends, colleagues and co-workers notes thrown over the cubicle wall; or dispatching a messenger to deliver a memo across town; or actually putting a stamp on an envelope and -- mon dieu! -- dropping it in a mailbox for the postman to spirit away to its intended.
The Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council will be holding three workgroups this summer, and all will require input from the public, as well as from the “stakeholders,” people like me who advocate for certain causes.
Did you know that in Florida, a government employee’s failure to comply with the state’s public records act can result in not only a $1,000 fine, but also one year in jail? Or both! It’s no mere theoretical penalty, it’s been imposed.
When I wrote two weeks ago about how I try to concentrate on the access issue, not the underlying controversy, when lending citizens a hand in understanding FOIA, I did not intend to make it one of a two-part series. Nonetheless, two events have me revisiting the notion today.
A few years back, you might remember, a little-known organization at the time called the Know Campaign made headlines when it was discovered the group had obtained voting history information and planned to send out personalized mailings to hundreds of households detailing when they’d voted in the past.
Undoubtedly this will sound harsh. Cold. But here it is:
I don't care if there's going to be a new road running through your neighborhood. It doesn't matter to me if your child is redistricted to go to a new school. I don't give a hoot whether the community center is repurposed.
Well, thanks a lot, Ms. Rhyne. Don't let that door hit you on the way out.
It's true that we don't know what secrets are being kept that we never find out about. It's like proving that the dog didn't bark. Even so, haven't you noticed that with government information in particular, it almost always has a way of coming out?
