Transparency News 12/15/17

Friday, December 15, 2017

Big changes are coming. Watch this space....

State and Local Stories

VCOG is happy to introduce our fourth Chip Woodrum Legislative Intern: Macoia Richmond. Macoia (it rhymes with muh-FOIA) is a senior criminal justice major at VCU. She'll be joining us in January and February to learn about open government and the legislative process in Virginia.

HB100 was filed Dec. 13. It would eliminate the current prohibition about releasing any information about the pharmacists, pharmacies or drugs used in the lethal injection process.

Follow this and other access-related bills on VCOG's annual legislative chart.

And if you're interested in being part of VCOG's lobbying effort by emailing and phoning your elected representatives, consider filling out this informational form.



National Stories
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The second episode of “How to be a journalist” looks at the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA. Libby Casey talks to investigative reporter Kimbriell Kelly and database editor Steven Rich about how they use open records laws to get information from the government.
Washington Post

A pair of bills that would make it easier to hide or delete some criminal records is dividing D.C. watchdog groups and victim advocates. During a six-hour public hearing Thursday on the legislation, the Judiciary Committee heard testimony from 30 witnesses, including representatives from The Washington Post and the D.C. Volunteer Lawyers Project. The Criminal Record Expungement Amendment Act would make records of misdemeanors eligible to be sealed and would include failure to appear, theft, and felony possession among the felonies eligible to be sealed. It was introduced by council member Trayon White, Ward 9 Democrat, and has seven co-sponsors. The Record Sealing Modernization Amendment Act would allow some criminal records to be automatically sealed and deleted in certain cases.
Washington Times

A powerful piece of hidden US history is once again emerging into the light.  Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California made a stir earlier this year when it released a group of Cold War-era atmospheric nuclear test videos that were declassified and approved for public viewing. We now have a sequel that's just as devastating to watch as the first round. The laboratory's latest batch includes 62 videos posted on Thursday. The films are from a series of 210 tests conducted by the US between 1945 and 1962. Many of the films, which were kept in vaults around the country, were suffering from decay. 
CNET News

A human rights law firm has sued the Louisiana governor's office and a sheriff's office for records involving a crude oil pipeline proposed across the Atchafalaya Basin. The Center for Constitutional Rights' lawsuit against St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne also requests records of his office's participation in responses to protests against a North Dakota pipeline. Both the Dakota Access Pipeline and the proposed Bayou Bridge Pipeline are projects of Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners. The suits allege the agencies have taken too long and provided too few records.
McClatchy

The top leaders of Broward Health have been indicted on charges of violating Florida’s public meetings law, throwing the public hospital system into the worst turmoil of its years of crises and investigations. A grand jury indictment names Broward Health board chairman Rocky Rodriguez, interim CEO Beverly Capasso, General Counsel Lynn Barrett, board member Christopher Ure and former board member Linda Robison. The charges are second-degree misdemeanors, carrying maximum penalties of a $500 fine and 60 days in jail per count. Summonses were issued Tuesday.
Sun-Sentinel

Champions of government oversight notched a significant win as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation strengthening that state's Freedom of Information Law(FOIL). The new legislation makes it easier for requesters stonewalled by agencies to recover attorney's fees for challenging denials in court by making such recovery mandatory in some cases, and hopefully will encourage other states to follow suit.
National Law Review