Transparency News 2/5/14

A Senate committee voted Tuesday to back legislation that wouldset deadlines and uniform procedures for registrars to follow before purging voters from the rolls based on data in other states. The legislation was introduced in response to a controversy that erupted last year, when more than 38,000 names were purged from Virginia voter rolls weeks before the general election. The names were generated by an interstate cross-check program that allows election officials to compare voter rolls and cancel the names of those who are registered in more than one jurisdiction.
Roanoke Times

American taxpayers spent $76 billion on food stamp programs in fiscal 2013, and more than one in 10 Virginians is enrolled. But any transaction data on what people are buying with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program dollars — or even how much individual retailers are getting in payments from the feds — is off-limits to the taxpayers footing the bill. In mid-January, Watchdog.orgfiled a request to the Virginia’s Department of Social Services for the date, time, amount and location of EBT card transactions  in Richmond over a two-month period. We made the request under the Freedom of Information Act and requested no personal data for the EBT beneficiaries. But federal officials with the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, as well as state officials via emails and phone, said the information can’t be disclosed under law.
Watchdog.org Virginia Bureau

National Stories

A federal judge in Missouri ruled this week held that drivers have a First Amendment right to flash their headlights to warn other motorists of nearby police and speed traps.  The order by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey in St. Louis on Monday stems from a lawsuit filed by Ellisville resident Michael Elli. In 2012, Elli flashed his headlights to warn oncoming vehicles of a radar set up by police in the town of Ellisville. An officer saw the flash and pulled over Elli, who could have faced a fine of up to $1,000 if convicted. Elli, was accused of "[f]lashing lights on certain vehicles . . . warning of RADAR ahead," according to court papers obtained by The Wall Street Journal. He faced a fine up to $1,000 in addition to points on his license, according to the report.
Fox News

A man who claims the data aggregation website Spokeo posted incorrect information about him does not have to prove he suffered tangible, economic harm to pursue damages under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held Tuesday. A three-judge panel reversed a decision by Judge Otis Wright of the Central District of California that found Thomas Robins failed to establish Article III standing under the injury-in-fact prong. Robins claimed that he suffered "anxiety, stress, concern, and/or worry about his diminished employment prospects" because Spokeo overstated his wealth and level of education.
The Recorder

A group of Democratic lawmakers have introduced a bill in both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives to restore net neutrality rules at the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. The two bills come about three weeks after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District Columbia Circuit struck down rules, passed by the FCC in late 2010, prohibiting broadband providers from selectively blocking or slowing Web traffic.
PC World

In an effort to fight off criticism that Delaware is a secret haven for untraceable companies engaged in suspected financial misdeeds, Gov. Jack Markell’s administration is taking a small step to increase disclosure. Last week, a bill was introduced in the state House of Representatives that is designed to enhance transparency by requiring business entities known as limited liability companies to maintain records that identify the names and addresses of members and managers. But the proposal does little to shed real light on who is behind the entities that seek to remain anonymous, one critic said.
The News Journal

Enroll Alaska mistakenly released about 300 email addresses Monday afternoon when an employee sent out a mass message about a healthcare.gov glitch without masking its recipients. The private broker immediately recalled the email, but not before some complaints filtered in from unhappy clients, said Tyann Boling, chief operating officer with Enroll Alaska. "People make mistakes," she said. "One of our employees did, they felt horrible about it, we recalled it." Enroll Alaska was able to delete the email from inboxes where it remained unopened, she said. Boling said the email went to a random selection of clients who both had and had not signed up for insurance.
Anchorage Daily News

Whether to unseal transcripts of FBI wiretaps that were not played at former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich's corruption trials but that were submitted as part of his appeal became a point of contention Monday between prosecutors and the defense. While the 7th U.S. Court of Appeals in Chicago is still mulling its decision on the imprisoned former Illinois governor's request to toss his convictions, it had indicated it would unseal the transcripts Monday. The recordings in dispute are among those trial Judge James Zagel barred defense lawyers from playing to jurors. Among the arguments in Blagojevich's 100-page appeal is that the tapes could have helped the Illinois Democrat make his case for acquittal.
State Journal-Register

Taxpayers can get a closer look at where their money is and where it's going, under programs promoted Monday by the candidates running for Illinois comptroller. Under an initiative spearheaded by Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon, residents can see how the state spends their tax dollars. When taxpayers file online, they now have the option to review an income tax receipt that breaks down which state programs are getting their money.
Quad-City Times
 

Editorials/Columns

Megan Rhyne, VCOG: Kick the outdated “citizens-only” provision to the curb, but give government flexibility, too.

News Leader: Before anyone gets excited about the ethics reform bills winding through the General Assembly, take sad note that they are as weak as this winter is long. The House of Delegates compromise that puts a $250 cap on gifts applies only to gifts from lobbyists or those with business before the state. Jonnie R. Williams Jr. — he of the Rolex for then-Gov. Bob McDonnell — is not a lobbyist. He was trying to get business before the state and allegedly using gifts as a means to that end. The General Assembly is supposed to be crafting stronger ethics laws to apply to itself. We aren’t holding our breaths. These are the same legislators who already this session killed a bill that would repeal the General Assembly’s exemption from the Freedom of Information Act.These are the same legislators who refuse to enact bipartisan redistricting, thus giving us gerrymandered districts and few contested elections.

Times-Dispatch: Money swings weight in state government. It might not buy votes, but it opens doors and greases skids. But money is not all-powerful, and one force trumps it every time: public opinion. Elected officials can live with fewer free meals and junkets abroad. They can’t live without votes. A recent poll from Christopher Newport University should get their attention. It found overwhelming support for ethics reform. Nearly two-thirds of respondents favor a $250 cap on tangible gifts to elected officials from lobbyists and others with business before the state. Another 30 percent thought the rules should be tougher.

Hartford Courant: Well, no surprise here. Now that the (Connecticut) General Assembly has needlessly weakened the state's Freedom of Information Act, a variety of interest groups want to carve out exemptions to the law for themselves. In a word, no. Bad idea. The public ought to be able to copy public records and attend public meetings and know what public officials are doing. Residents of Connecticut have given lawmakers no reason to weaken the FOI. The solons shouldn't have done it last year, and they shouldn't do it again.