State and Local Stories
We need you TODAY!
If you can come to the House General Laws FOIA subcommittee this afternoon, please do! We need citizens to testify against SB202, SB552 and SB645.
The exact time of the meeting can’t be stated because it will begin after the conclusion of another subcommittee, which will begin after the conclusion of the House daily floor session. But if you’re there by 1:30 or 2:00, you should be fine (but bring a book or something to keep yourself occupied just in case).
If you can’t attend in person, it’s not too late to contact the subcommittee members to voice your opposition:
Del. Jim LeMunyon (chair): DelJLeMunyon@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @JimLeMunyon)
Del. Richard Anderson: DelRAnderson@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @DelRichAnderson)
Del. Betsy Carr: DelBCarr@house.virginia.gov
Del. Randy Minchew: DelRMinchew@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @RandyMinchew)
Del. Roxann Robinson: DelRRobinson@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @DelRRobinson)
Del. Jeion Ward: DelJWard@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @JeionWard)
Del. Joseph Yost: DelJYost@house.virginia.gov (Twitter: @yostfordelegate)
A House of Delegates subcommittee will hear thoughts from police associations and the public today about a bill that would allow the names of law enforcement officers to be withheld from the public. The subcommittee could keep the bill alive, kill it or request it be studied by a legislative committee that is in the midst of a three-year examination of the state’s Freedom of Information Act and various exemptions to it.
Virginian-Pilot
It started with a reporter’s attempt to learn whether problem police officers were moving from department to department. It resulted in legislation that is again bringing national scrutiny to the Virginia General Assembly: a bill that could keep all Virginia police officers’ names secret. In a climate where the actions of police nationwide are being watched as never before, supporters say the bill is needed to keep officers safe from people who may harass or harm them. But the effort has drawn the attention of civil rights groups and others who say police should be moving toward more transparency — not less — to ensure that troubled officers are found and removed. Kevin Carroll, president of the Virginia Fraternal Order of Police union, said he knew of one instance when a citizen had taken an officer’s name and committed financial fraud, adding that the potential existed in other cases for danger to an officer’s family. “This is not about trying to keep information from the public, to have secret police,” Carroll said.”But it is about wanting to keep our officers safe.” “We do not expect this to be abused,” said Dana Schrad, executive director of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police.
Washington Post
Local law enforcement officials said Wednesday they support a Virginia bill that would essentially keep the names of police officers secret from the public. Washington County Sheriff Fred Newman said Wednesday that he believes it is a good piece of legislation that he supports. “I support the bill because it places officer's data in the same arena as private sector employees,” Sullivan said. “I cannot walk in to just any office and be granted access to employee files. Further, this bill places the responsibility squarely on my shoulders to investigate the histories of applicants.”
Herald-Courier
The Portsmouth City Council fined Danny Meeks $1,500 on Tuesday for breaking a council rule, making him the second member in recent months to be fined. In September, council members amended a rule so they could censure or fine anyone who reveals confidential matters discussed in a closed meeting or uses a recording device in such a meeting. Councilman Bill Moody was fined in January for a Facebook post that mentioned what the council would be talking about in closed session. Meeks was likely fined over information he shared with The Virginian-Pilot regarding the region’s trash authority. Meeks told The Pilot about several companies’ bids to the Southeastern Public Service Authority. Vice Mayor Elizabeth Psimas said there was no formal vote in closed session about Meeks’ fine. There was also no vote during the public session. During the closed session Tuesday evening, Mayor Kenny Wright produced a letter that already had four council members’ signatures on it, Psimas said. She and Moody were left off.
Virginian-Pilot
Former BVU executive David Copeland testified this afternoon that he believes contractors with BVU would have lost work if they hadn't paid for gifts and other items solicited by the utilities provider. Copeland, who also said that vendors regularly supplied gift cards to BVU executives, testified on the sixth day of trial for BVU Chief Financial Officer Stacey Pomrenke, who is charged with 15 corruption-related counts. Copeland earlier pleaded guilty to his role in a years-long kickback scheme and is serving two years in prison. Copeland testified that Pomrenke signed off on all invoices, including the fraudulent ones he submitted. He also testified that he faked invoices to recoup $40,000 lost in a failed biodiesel business.
Herald Courier
National Stories
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday he supports a bipartisan plan to livestream video from the floor of the House of Delegates and state Senate, his first endorsement of any legislation this session. The $1.2 million idea, introduced by Dels. Kathy Szeliga, Harford County Republican, and David Moon, Montgomery County Democrat, would put cameras in both chambers of the General Assembly and employ a four-person team to operate the system, giving the public access to floor debates.
Washington Times
Facing scrutiny and criticism from civil rights and open government groups, a leading New Jersey lawmaker said Tuesday he was considering changes to proposed legislation that would shield police video and 911 recordings from the public in New Jersey. "This is a work in progress," state Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Bergen) said of his bill (S788), which would exempt such recordings and transcripts from the New Jersey's Open Public Records Act, during a transparency forum hosted by the Bergen County chapter of the NAACP. The measure, introduced at the beginning of the legislative session, comes as police departments across the state are beginning to use body-worn camera technology amid a national climate of scrutiny of police shootings.
NJ.com
Editorials/Columns
Some proponents of this secret police bill say officers have dangerous jobs, which is no doubt true. So, too, do judges and prosecutors, but the bill doesn’t address them. It includes only law enforcement officers working for local and state agencies, including the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, Virginia Marine Police, Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Virginia Lottery, Department of Conservation and Recreation and Department of Motor Vehicles. The bill’s proponents can name no specific incidents where public information has allowed a criminal to track down and physically harm a law enforcement officer. Other states have passed laws that specifically allow for names to be withheld if their release compromises an investigation. In passing this bill, the Virginia Senate stepped from that place of logic to secret police territory. We want our police to be safe. In most cases, their names need not be secret. May the House of Delegates show much-needed wisdom on this matter. Government transparency must be diligently preserved. It protects both citizens who have the right to know and workers who have nothing to hide.
News Leader
It was supposed to be prime opportunity for state officials to wine, dine and otherwise schmooze business leaders about opening up shop in the commonwealth. But it’s turned out to be a giant headache for the administration of Gov. Terry McAuliffe and his secretary of commerce, Maurice Jones. The Washington Redskins front office had made the corporate luxury suite available to Jones, who hoped to stuff it full of business prospects he hoped to lure to Virginia. Catering was lined up, and invitations sent out for the shindig. So to fill the skybox with people, 15 state employees and their guests showed up. All but six were there just for a fun Sunday afternoon of professional football. And the catering? Taxpayers picked up the bill, to the tune of $2,435.21. But who were the two business prospects? Who were the 15 state employees, there on the taxpayers’ dime? The public and the news media have no idea. Why? Because when the state Commerce Department complied with the FOIA request, names of all but two of the attendees were redacted: Jones and an aide, Kelly Spraker. We thought Richmond had learned a tough lesson from the McDonnell Giftgate scandal, but this incident has us questioning that assumption. Gov. McAuliffe needs to address this affair decisively, and the sooner the better.
News & Advance
Seven and a half years ago, as a new reporter here [at ProPublica], I filed a Freedom of Information Act request for all reports of misconduct by federal air marshals. It had been several years since the U.S. government rapidly expanded its force of undercover agents trained to intervene in hijackings after 9/11. And a source within the agency told me that a number of air marshals had recently been arrested or gotten in trouble for hiring prostitutes on missions overseas. I knew the FOIA request would take a while — perhaps a few months — but I figured I’d have the records in time for my first ProPublica project. Instead, I heard nothing but crickets from the Transportation Security Administration. Finally, last Wednesday, an email popped into my inbox with the data I had been fighting for since my fourth day at ProPublica. The saga to get the air marshal data reveals a lot about the problems with FOIA, which is supposed to guarantee the public’s access to government records, as well as what happens when an agency decides to drag out the process.
Michael Grabell, ProPublica