Transparency News 1/31/17
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
State and Local Stories
State and Local Stories
Chemical recipes used in fracking, the controversial method of extracting natural gas and oil by high-pressure ground injections, could be kept secret under legislation that passed the Virginia House of Delegates on Monday. The House voted 59-37 in favor of legislation to exempt information about chemical concentrations from disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act as trade secrets of the companies seeking permits from the state Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. “By protecting that actual recipe, it will foster more efficient and more advancements in the fracking industry,” Del. Roxann Robinson R-Chesterfield, sponsor of House Bill 1678, said Friday during floor debate. (Note: the names of the chemicals used will be open, but not the amount of each one.)
Roanoke Times
A House of Delegates subcommittee killed more than 20 proposed amendments to the Virginia constitution in a single vote before 9 a.m. Monday, including those related to redistricting reform and restoring felons’ rights. After voting to pass resolutions on three constitutional amendments, the subcommittee lumped the rest together, including proposals brought by Republicans and Democrats. Despite protests from Democrats urging individual votes, the majority grouped the resolutions together and killed them on one 4-to-3 vote. Ahead of what would have been a voice vote, Del. Marcia S. “Cia” Price, D-Newport News, moved that the vote on the group of bills be recorded. She voted against laying the resolutions on the table with Del. Jason S. Miyares, R-Virginia Beach, and Del. Joseph C. Lindsey, D-Norfolk.
News & Advance
Virginia Senate Clerk Susan Clarke Schaar has worked in her post for 27 years. She earns $175,392. G. Paul Nardo, clerk of the Virginia House of Delegates, has been in his job for 5½ years. He earns $194,341. Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment Jr., R-James City, wants to fix the discrepancy. He’s filed a budget amendment that would raise Schaar’s salary to $195,065 starting at the end of June. Norment’s move puts a focus on two well-regarded veterans of state government, parliamentary experts who oversee daily operations in their chambers, maintain records and supervise staffs, among many official duties. The state budget doesn’t reflect the current compensation amount for either clerk. Norment’s amendment also would make the budget reflect the actual amount of compensation for both employees.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Virginia's top transportation official will push for major reform of the way the state hands out money to airports in response to what he says was the largest ever unauthorized use of state funds, by the Peninsula Airport Commission. The commission used the money to repay a loan made in 2014 to People Express Airlines, which ceased operations in September of that year. The commission, meanwhile, is planning a special meeting Tuesday. The agenda calls for a report in public by executive director Ken Spirito to be followed by a closed session. Newport News Councilwoman Sharon Scott, who was appointed to the commission more than a year after the commission repaid $4.5 million that People Express borrowed from TowneBank, said, "We are going to discuss it more in detail and understand how things have transpired." "It appears that whenever that decision was made, they thought they were operating under the guidelines of what the state funding was," she said. "I'm concerned that it's two years old and Aubrey Layne has this position. And the airport is audited annually, and these records are open to the public."
Daily Press
National Stories
Federal prosecutors have dropped charges against three journalists who were among the more than 200 people arrested in connection with rioting and vandalism that took place in Washington, D.C., on Inauguration Day. Monday’s decision comes three days after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District filed its first notice to dismiss a felony rioting charge against a journalist who was reporting from the scene that day, Evan Engel of Vocativ. “After a review of evidence presented to us by law enforcement, we have concluded that we will not proceed with the charges against the three defendants, who are journalists,” said Bill Miller, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Washington Times
A New Jersey appeals court has ruled citizens can seek public records requests filed by others. One of the plaintiffs had sought all public records requests filed in connection with the George Washington Bridge lane-closing case. Others had sought records from the Motor Vehicle Commission and state Department of Education. Republican Gov. Chris Christie's office and numerous state agencies had sought to reverse a judge's ruling granting the requests. They argued New Jersey's Open Public Records Act wasn't meant as "a research tool" and that the requests weren't specific enough. They also cited a previous appeals court ruling in a case involving federal subpoenas in Middlesex County.
SNJ Today
Editorials/Columns
Virginia’s FOIA should serve the cause of openness, as its preamble succinctly argues. Yet, the FOI Advisory Council balked at adopting substantial proposals requested by open government advocates and members of the media. That’s a huge disappointment to Virginians who expected better from a General Assembly that is the modern incarnation of the nation’s first deliberative legislature. It reflects poorly on a council which should always err on the side of the public’s right to know. That is what made this process so illuminating: the willingness of the state’s FOIA Council to readily honor the excuses offered by officials and their lobbyists for secrecy. That may be due to the fact that the council is heavily weighted toward public officials. By law, the 12 members include lawmakers; representatives from the Attorney General’s Office, the Library of Virginia and the Division of Legislative Services and officials from local government. Only one is to be a member of the media. Nobody else advocates for citizens. That could — and should — change through a bill proposed by Del. David Yancey, which is scheduled to be heard in committee today. It would add another member of the media to the council, raising its membership to 13. It’s not the best fix. There are other respected nonpartisan, nonpolitical groups advocating for open government that could provide an effective and valuable perspective. However, few groups know better the importance of strong open government laws than does the media, so Yancey’s bill makes reasonable sense and deserves approval.
Virginian-Pilot
Within the stack of hundreds of bills currently making their way through or getting tossed out are three from our local delegates we would like eventually to see make it through the sausage mill that is our state legislature in Richmond. [One] is a repeat bill proposed by our friend from Amherst, Del. Ben Cline. We liked this bill last session. We liked it this session. We will like it again next session because, unfortunately, this bill died a premature death in committee Thursday. HB 1677 would have required the fate of all legislation that comes before a subcommittee to receive a recorded vote. Currently, a bill may come before a subcommittee and receive a voice vote or a quick count of hands by the chair. The individual votes are never recorded. In 2014, state watchdog group Transparency Virginia reported House of Delegates committees and subcommittees did not record votes on 76 percent of the bills they killed and many bills did not even receive a hearing. Ironically, Cline’s bill was rejected by an unrecorded voice vote. Hopefully Cline will bring back this common sense legislation for a another try.
News Leader
When it comes to policing for profit, no one is immune from temptation. Just ask Attorney General Mark Herring. The knock against the practice — sometimes called “civil asset forfeiture” — has been clear and simple for many years: Allowing law-enforcement agencies to confiscate people’s personal property without even filing criminal charges, let alone obtaining a conviction, violates the nation’s bedrock principles regarding justice. What’s more, allowing law-enforcement agencies to keep and spend the proceeds of such seizures gives them an overwhelming incentive to further abuse an already abusive system. This is not a new concern. Congress tried to address it more than 15 years ago, when it passed the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act. But even existing reforms can be undermined, sometimes by the very people who are supposed to enforce them. Formal Justice Department policy prohibits paying for raises with funds gained through “equitable sharing” of property seizures carried out in joint federal-state operations. But somebody at Justice put togetheran informal PowerPoint presentation showing states how they could get around that rule.
Daily Progress
Roanoke Times
A House of Delegates subcommittee killed more than 20 proposed amendments to the Virginia constitution in a single vote before 9 a.m. Monday, including those related to redistricting reform and restoring felons’ rights. After voting to pass resolutions on three constitutional amendments, the subcommittee lumped the rest together, including proposals brought by Republicans and Democrats. Despite protests from Democrats urging individual votes, the majority grouped the resolutions together and killed them on one 4-to-3 vote. Ahead of what would have been a voice vote, Del. Marcia S. “Cia” Price, D-Newport News, moved that the vote on the group of bills be recorded. She voted against laying the resolutions on the table with Del. Jason S. Miyares, R-Virginia Beach, and Del. Joseph C. Lindsey, D-Norfolk.
News & Advance
Virginia Senate Clerk Susan Clarke Schaar has worked in her post for 27 years. She earns $175,392. G. Paul Nardo, clerk of the Virginia House of Delegates, has been in his job for 5½ years. He earns $194,341. Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment Jr., R-James City, wants to fix the discrepancy. He’s filed a budget amendment that would raise Schaar’s salary to $195,065 starting at the end of June. Norment’s move puts a focus on two well-regarded veterans of state government, parliamentary experts who oversee daily operations in their chambers, maintain records and supervise staffs, among many official duties. The state budget doesn’t reflect the current compensation amount for either clerk. Norment’s amendment also would make the budget reflect the actual amount of compensation for both employees.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Virginia's top transportation official will push for major reform of the way the state hands out money to airports in response to what he says was the largest ever unauthorized use of state funds, by the Peninsula Airport Commission. The commission used the money to repay a loan made in 2014 to People Express Airlines, which ceased operations in September of that year. The commission, meanwhile, is planning a special meeting Tuesday. The agenda calls for a report in public by executive director Ken Spirito to be followed by a closed session. Newport News Councilwoman Sharon Scott, who was appointed to the commission more than a year after the commission repaid $4.5 million that People Express borrowed from TowneBank, said, "We are going to discuss it more in detail and understand how things have transpired." "It appears that whenever that decision was made, they thought they were operating under the guidelines of what the state funding was," she said. "I'm concerned that it's two years old and Aubrey Layne has this position. And the airport is audited annually, and these records are open to the public."
Daily Press
National Stories
Federal prosecutors have dropped charges against three journalists who were among the more than 200 people arrested in connection with rioting and vandalism that took place in Washington, D.C., on Inauguration Day. Monday’s decision comes three days after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District filed its first notice to dismiss a felony rioting charge against a journalist who was reporting from the scene that day, Evan Engel of Vocativ. “After a review of evidence presented to us by law enforcement, we have concluded that we will not proceed with the charges against the three defendants, who are journalists,” said Bill Miller, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Washington Times
A New Jersey appeals court has ruled citizens can seek public records requests filed by others. One of the plaintiffs had sought all public records requests filed in connection with the George Washington Bridge lane-closing case. Others had sought records from the Motor Vehicle Commission and state Department of Education. Republican Gov. Chris Christie's office and numerous state agencies had sought to reverse a judge's ruling granting the requests. They argued New Jersey's Open Public Records Act wasn't meant as "a research tool" and that the requests weren't specific enough. They also cited a previous appeals court ruling in a case involving federal subpoenas in Middlesex County.
SNJ Today
Editorials/Columns
Virginia’s FOIA should serve the cause of openness, as its preamble succinctly argues. Yet, the FOI Advisory Council balked at adopting substantial proposals requested by open government advocates and members of the media. That’s a huge disappointment to Virginians who expected better from a General Assembly that is the modern incarnation of the nation’s first deliberative legislature. It reflects poorly on a council which should always err on the side of the public’s right to know. That is what made this process so illuminating: the willingness of the state’s FOIA Council to readily honor the excuses offered by officials and their lobbyists for secrecy. That may be due to the fact that the council is heavily weighted toward public officials. By law, the 12 members include lawmakers; representatives from the Attorney General’s Office, the Library of Virginia and the Division of Legislative Services and officials from local government. Only one is to be a member of the media. Nobody else advocates for citizens. That could — and should — change through a bill proposed by Del. David Yancey, which is scheduled to be heard in committee today. It would add another member of the media to the council, raising its membership to 13. It’s not the best fix. There are other respected nonpartisan, nonpolitical groups advocating for open government that could provide an effective and valuable perspective. However, few groups know better the importance of strong open government laws than does the media, so Yancey’s bill makes reasonable sense and deserves approval.
Virginian-Pilot
Within the stack of hundreds of bills currently making their way through or getting tossed out are three from our local delegates we would like eventually to see make it through the sausage mill that is our state legislature in Richmond. [One] is a repeat bill proposed by our friend from Amherst, Del. Ben Cline. We liked this bill last session. We liked it this session. We will like it again next session because, unfortunately, this bill died a premature death in committee Thursday. HB 1677 would have required the fate of all legislation that comes before a subcommittee to receive a recorded vote. Currently, a bill may come before a subcommittee and receive a voice vote or a quick count of hands by the chair. The individual votes are never recorded. In 2014, state watchdog group Transparency Virginia reported House of Delegates committees and subcommittees did not record votes on 76 percent of the bills they killed and many bills did not even receive a hearing. Ironically, Cline’s bill was rejected by an unrecorded voice vote. Hopefully Cline will bring back this common sense legislation for a another try.
News Leader
When it comes to policing for profit, no one is immune from temptation. Just ask Attorney General Mark Herring. The knock against the practice — sometimes called “civil asset forfeiture” — has been clear and simple for many years: Allowing law-enforcement agencies to confiscate people’s personal property without even filing criminal charges, let alone obtaining a conviction, violates the nation’s bedrock principles regarding justice. What’s more, allowing law-enforcement agencies to keep and spend the proceeds of such seizures gives them an overwhelming incentive to further abuse an already abusive system. This is not a new concern. Congress tried to address it more than 15 years ago, when it passed the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act. But even existing reforms can be undermined, sometimes by the very people who are supposed to enforce them. Formal Justice Department policy prohibits paying for raises with funds gained through “equitable sharing” of property seizures carried out in joint federal-state operations. But somebody at Justice put togetheran informal PowerPoint presentation showing states how they could get around that rule.
Daily Progress
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