Transparency News 12/17/15

State and Local Stories

Two Chinese manufacturing companies were able to save years of time in building a new mining dump truck by ripping off thousands of crucial documents, officials with Liebherr Mining and Construction Equipment testified this week. Binder after binder of exhibits introduced at a two-day damages hearing in Newport News Circuit Court included virtually all of the design schematics for the truck — from its lightweight frame to the electrical systems to the brakes, steering and dumping mechanisms. Liebherr lawyers had given notice that they might ask that the courtroom be closed for parts of this week's hearing, and that they would ask that some exhibits be filed under seal. But Fisher said at the hearing's outset Tuesday that "the likelihood of me closing the hearing is pretty small," and that court is generally open, "that's just the way it is." He also said the sealing issue could be partially avoided by not introducing many documents, given that the Chinese firms weren't there to object anyway. But Liebherr attorneys asked — and Fisher agreed — that they be allowed to introduce several binders of documents and show them to the judge as they discussed them with witnesses, without actually admitting them as evidence. Later, they said, they would ask that some documents be filed under seal and others be made part of the public file.
Daily Press

Virginians voting in the March 1 Republican presidential primary will be required to sign a nonbinding statement that they’re party members. The move is designed to keep out Democrats. But several registrars at a State Board of Elections meeting warned it will create backlogs for election workers and anger some voters. Election officials said that under current law, the completed forms would be kept confidential, but a GOP official indicated the party would like to get access to the names and other personal information that may be included. Virginia voters do not register by party, and voting in primaries is open to anyone. However, state law allows a political party to request that voters sign a pledge or statement of party affiliation before casting primary ballots.
Virginian-Pilot

In careful calligraphic script, the sale of “one certain negro man by name Patrick” to Samuel Wiatt was recorded June 1809. The transaction was one page in one book within a room of 1,159 deed books in the care of the Lynchburg Circuit Court Clerk’s office. To ensure such public documents last for posterity, the office has been aggressive in using grants from the Library of Virginia to scan digital copies of the books, or if needed, to repair and preserve the books. “My goal is that these records are around here forever,” Lynchburg Circuit Court Clerk Eugene Wingfield said.
News & Advance

Community activist Michael Muhammad called for the removal of Councilman Tommy Smigiel as principal during a School Board meeting Wednesday. Muhammad, a former mayoral candidate, said Smigiel’s position as an elected official conflicts with his role as principal of the new Academy for Discovery at Lakewood. “Mr. Smigiel’s presence presents a distraction to the learning process in that he has inordinate influence as a councilman who votes on the budget,” he said. The council funds a portion of Norfolk Public Schools’ budget.
Virginian-Pilot

National Stories
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Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter relied on a personal email account to conduct a portion of his government business during his first months at the Pentagon, according to White House and Defense Department officials and copies of Mr. Carter’s emails obtained by The New York Times. Mr. Carter continued the practice, which violated Defense Department rules, for at least two months after it was publicly revealed in March that Hillary Clinton had exclusively used a personal email account as secretary of state, the officials said. It is not clear when Mr. Carter stopped using the account. But an administration official said that when the White House chief of staff, Denis R. McDonough, learned about Mr. Carter’s email practices in May, Mr. McDonough directed the White House Counsel’s Office to contact the Defense Department to ask why Mr. Carter was relying on the personal account.
New York Times

An open government is one that is transparent, participatory and collaborative. But moving from traditional government operating behind closed doors to more open institutions, where civil servants work together with citizens to create policies and solve problems, demands new skills and sensibilities. As more and more American public-sector leaders embrace the concept of openness as a positive force for governmental effectiveness, they would do well to look toward Brazil's capital city, where an unusual experiment was just launched: an effort to use a variation on crowdsourcing to retrain Sao Paulo's 150,000 civil servants. It's described as the world's largest open-government training program. The program, known as Agents of Open Government - part of a wider city initiative called "Sao Paulo Aberta" (Open Sao Paulo) -- aims to teach through peer-to-peer learning, where government employees learn from citizens. Twenty-four citizen-led courses that began last month are aimed not only at government employees and elected community representatives but also at social activists and the general population.
Governing

Nebraska lawmakers will consider a proposal next year that would place more agencies on the state's spending transparency website. State Treasurer Don Stenberg and state Sen. John McCollister announced Tuesday that they will propose legislation that would require quasi-public agencies to submit their financial records for publication. Financial information would appear on the website, www.statespending.nebraska.gov.
The Independent

Editorials/Columns

PORTSMOUTH firefighters save people from burning buildings and revive folks in cardiac arrest. City employees in behavioral health care help children and families facing stressful conditions. Garbage truck drivers haul odoriferous waste from homes, one large container at a time. If they don’t produce, no matter the circumstances, they don’t get paid. They can be terminated. So why should it be any different for city Auditor Jesse Andre Thomas, an official pocketing a nearly six-figure salary, but who’s done very little work? The fact the City Council continues to employ Thomas is bewildering. It’s damaged the credibility of council members, and it’s sparked resentment among municipal employees making a fraction of Thomas’ $95,000 salary. I wanted to know whether Thomas’ tortoise-like progress has hurt the morale of other employees. Unfortunately, many said I couldn’t interview them unless they cleared the request with public information officials.
Roger Chesley, Virginian-Pilot