Transparency News 1/29/16

State and Local Stories

Yesterday, the House General Laws FOIA subcommittee had 18 bills on its docket. Right off the bat, at the request of the patrons, five of them were sent to the FOIA Council for study later this year, two others were not heard because the patron wasn’t available and the patron of a third asked prior to the meeting for his bill to be carried over for another week.

The committee advanced (unanimously!) a bill requiring closed meetings to be recorded so there is some record of the meeting in the case of a dispute. (See story below).

The committee also unanimously reported a bill to add another working journalist to the makeup of the FOIA Council.

And all members endorsed a bill that would require local governments to designate a FOIA point-person for the public and to post a rights and responsibilities-type page on the homepage of their website like state agencies are already required to do.

There was general agreement among open government and government officials that there should be a public comment period at meetings, but instead of advancing a bill on that, the subcommittee sent the measure to the FOIA Council for further work on the details in light of some legitimate practical concerns.

There was stiff opposition from government, particularly law enforcement, for a bill that would make certain violations of FOIA a Class 4 misdemeanor (this is a newly worded version of the bill as it was originally introduced). The subcommittee members seemed divided, but instead of moving to kill or pass it, they recommended having it sent to the criminal law subcommittee of the House Courts of Justice committee.

The subcommittee recommended passing a bill that would close off certain information about the process for and the chemicals used in fracking. The vote was not unanimous, meaning it will be eligible for additional discussion at the full General Laws Committee. (See story below)

Testimony was taken regarding a bill to reverse the Virginia Supreme Court holding last fall that threw into question the duty to redact non-exempt portions of records. Again, primary opposition came from law enforcement. Local government representatives were largely in favor of the concept, but pointed out some problems with the current language. The subcommittee chair, who is also the patron of the bill, asked that the bill be held over for another week to work those problems out. “I really want to get this right,” he said.

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Republican Del. Rick Morris of Isle of Wight County says there’s not enough accountability when local governments talk in closed sessions. He’s pushing a bill, HB800, that would require them to make a recording and minutes of those secret discussions – which would not be public but could be turned over through a court order or if there’s a dispute about whether the government body broke the law. His bill has some life. A House subcommittee studying Freedom of Information Act issues voted for it unanimously on Thursday after Morris made his case. Representatives from the Virginia Association of Counties and the Virginia Municipal League opposed the bill. “The concern is, there’s going to be outside meetings where they resolve these things rather than going into closed session,” said Michelle Gowdy, VML’s general counsel.
Virginian-Pilot

Oil companies could keep the chemicals they pump into the ground during fracking operations secret from the public under one of several Freedom of Information Act bills that moved forward Thursday. House Bill 1389 was a late addition to this legislative session, and Del. Roxann Robinson, R-Chesterfield, had to get special permission from her colleagues to introduce it after a filing deadline. The oil and gas industry requested the bill to ensure that proprietary chemical and water blends used to fracture underground rock and release gas can be kept secret from competitors. The state's Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy would keep the chemical names on file, though, and release lists to first responders in case of an emergency. The Virginia Press Association opposed the bill, with attorney Craig Merritt arguing that people should know what's going into the ground. "People in Flint, Michigan … would have loved this bill," Merritt said, referencing the lead poisoning crisis there.
Daily Press

As the auto title-loan industry faces mounting criticism from Virginia lawmakers, state officials heard arguments today from three of the nation’s biggest lenders fighting to keep their sensitive financial reports from being made public. The title loan companies — TitleMax of Virginia Inc.; Anderson Financial Services LLC, doing business as Loan Max; and Fast Auto Loans Inc. — argued during a Virginia State Corporation Commission hearing that disclosing the annual financial reports they file with the state could seriously harm their businesses. The lenders said that release of the information such as the interest rates they each charge and how many cars they repossess from buyers who default on loans could be used by their competitors to gain an edge, or were “trade secrets” that should remain confidential.
Center for Public Integrity

Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Michael N. Herring said Thursday that he has begun reviewing a city official’s work overseeing the construction of Mayor Dwight C. Jones’ church. “After further discussions with the city auditor, we have decided to continue our review of all the matters,” Herring told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Separately, the Virginia State Police have accepted Jones’ Jan. 14 request that the agency look into the issue, Jones told reporters Thursday after he delivered the final State of the City address of his eight-year tenure.
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Norfolk Treasurer Anthony Burfoot is not allowed to speak with any of his employees who might be called to testify during his public corruption and perjury trial later this year. During a hearing Thursday morning, U.S. District Judge Henry Morgan Jr. said Burfoot may communicate with such employees only in writing or through an intermediary, such as his chief deputy. He said it would be too difficult to enforce a restriction by which Burfoot was allowed to speak with witnesses about their jobs but not about the case.
Virginian-Pilot


National Stories
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In response to criticism last year that Arizona Republican leaders rushed passage of a state budget with little public input, Gov. Doug Ducey and the Legislature this year promised more transparency. But not everyone at the Capitol views transparency the same way when it comes to the state's proposed $9.5 billion spending plan. At one end of the spectrum: The House Appropriations Committee has elected not to allow public comment during departmental budget hearingsto be held over the coming weeks. At the other end: The Senate Appropriations Committee will invite the public to speak on the state spending plan, and the Governor's Office has been gathering public comment at events around the state. "I don’t understand why we’re fearful of hearing what the citizens of Arizona think about what we should do as their representatives,” said House Minority Leader Eric Meyer.
Arizona Republic


Editorials/Columns

It is not exactly unheard of for salaried individuals to spend part of their work time on outside interests. After all, they often spend a good part of their supposedly non-work time taking care of company affairs. White-collar employees sometimes send emails about the PTA from their work computers — and then review office work on a laptop during their children’s soccer games. Email, texting, and Internet access have made it possible for work life to bleed into home life, and vice versa, to a degree that once was unheard of. So we don’t think what Emmanuel Adediran did is necessarily a mortal sin. Adediran, the head of public works for the City of Richmond, spent what now looks like a considerable amount of city time on a side job: helping oversee the construction of a new building for First Baptist Church of South Richmond. The pastor of that church is Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones. More serious questions concern Jones. Newly discovered emails show that Adediran kept him in the loop on progress at the church, and in one reply Jones expressed concern that things were not moving fast enough. This contradicts the impression the mayor gave earlier: that he knew little if anything about Adediran’s activity on his church’s behalf, that he has no control over it, and that he has “worked hard” to keep city and church matters separate. Jones cannot maintain his pretense of ignorance any longer. The public has a right to know whether he pressured Adediran or other city subordinates to work on his church project, or whether they received any benefits for doing so. Either would be bad enough. If any city money went to the church as well, that would compound the offense dramatically. Richmonders deserve to know whether this affair is simply a case of cronyism — or something far more serious.
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Sometimes you can do everything that you're supposed to do — your due diligence, as they say — and still come out looking bad. When you are a government official in a time and place where you know a bright spotlight is being focused on questions of ethics, it is critical to avoid even the perception of impropriety. This is why Maurice Jones, secretary of commerce and trade under Gov. Terry McAuliffe, should not have accepted the free use of a luxury box for the Washington Redskins playoff game.
Daily Press