Posted 3/13/18 by Megan Rhyne
When I get together with my counterparts in other states — such as the Florida First Amendment Foundation, Open Oregon, the New England First Amendment Coalition, or the Ohio Coalition for Open Government — I often imagine us as residents of a nursing home sharing our ailments. We nod and tsk-tsk as we exchange tales of the latest abuse of our open government laws.
Posted 1/30/18 by Megan Rhyne
Below is a chart of positions VCOG is taking on bills being heard by a FOIA-centric House subcommittee today, Jan. 30, 2018
Posted 1/25/18 by Megan Rhyne
GUEST COLUMN:
Practicing lawyers have reason to want to keep judges happy and to fear judges' displeasure. Accordingly, VCOG agreed to post this contribution from one of its lawyer members anonymously.
Posted 1/23/18 by Megan Rhyne
Tuesday, the FOIA and procurement subcommittee of the House General Laws Committee considered 21 bills, including 12 that are on VCOG’s watch list.
Posted 10/24/17 by Megan Rhyne
VCOG urges the governor’s office to be more forthcoming with information related to the Aug. 11-12 Unite the Right rallies in Charlottesville.
Posted 10/13/17 by Shelley Kimball
By Shelley Kimball
Time. In the world of public records requests, this can be an obstacle both to the requester and the records custodian.
And this is not just an issue in the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Posted 9/26/17 by Shelley Kimball
By Megan Rhyne
(This is the second in a two-part series on tracking proposed legislation. Read the first part here.)
Posted 9/12/17 by Shelley Kimball
By Megan Rhyne
(This is the first in a two-part series on tracking proposed legislation. Find the second part here.)
Posted 8/29/17 by Shelley Kimball
By Jeff South
Overcoming recalcitrant bureaucrats isn’t the only challenge for people who seek public documents or data under the Freedom of Information Act.
Another challenge is managing your paperwork: crafting and filing your FOIA requests and tracking responses.
Fortunately, a bevy of online tools is available to help you with those tasks. Here is a tour of such resources, building on a presentation I gave at VCOG’s Pop-Up Sunshine event in March.
Posted 8/20/17 by Megan Rhyne
We’re all winners and losers with Abingdon’s recent FOIA ruling
Bristol Herald Courier editorial, August 20, 2017
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