Transparency News, 3/21/2022

Monday
March 21, 2022

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter
Contact us at vcog@opengovva.org

state & local news stories

Robert Jeffrey Jr. is off the Roanoke City Council as a result of his felony embezzlement conviction Thursday, a city official said Friday. According to state law, a public official who is convicted of a felony and who also remains convicted after all possible appeals “shall...forfeit his office or post.” Jeffrey stole pandemic relief funds and embezzled from a Roanoke nonprofit housing organization where he worked. Some illegal acts occurred before he took office on Jan. 1, 2021, some after, prosecutors have said. He was found guilty of three felonies as the result of two separate trials this week. On Thursday, he pleaded no contest to embezzlement in Roanoke Circuit Court in a plea bargain that required he waive his right to appeal. In response to his plea, Judge David Carson found him guilty. As a result of the conviction and the judge’s acceptance of the plea agreement, “Mr. Jeffrey has forfeited his seat on City Council,” Roanoke City Attorney Tim Spencer said by email Friday.
The Roanoke Times

Efforts are underway to try and make Clarke County Circuit Court records, some of which date back almost 200 years, last for perpetuity. A $31,666 grant from the Library of Virginia will enable four deed books, two marriage record books and a will book to undergo restoration and preservation. The records also will be digitized to help people access them more easily. Some records books already underwent improvements courtesy of a previous $18,913.25 grant the court clerk’s office received from the state library. Court records are available for public inspection. The documents — especially ones such as land and marriage records and wills — help relate the history of the county and its residents, according to Circuit Court Clerk April Wilkerson. For that reason, the records are precious.
The Winchester Star

The Shenandoah County School Board has discontinued legal counsel with BotkinRose, of Harrisonburg, and is now under the legal counsel of Sands Anderson, of Richmond. The board voted 4-2 in favor of the decision at a Thursday night work session. Members Cindy Walsh and Andrew Keller voted against the measure. Normally the School Board wouldn’t vote on any action items during a work session, Chairperson Marty Helsley said during the session. However, they did so on Thursday because the discussion has been tabled from the March 10 public meeting. The vote to table the measure was not unanimous, as board member Brandi Rutz opposed pushing off the discussion and also voted against approving the altered agenda that evening. “We decided it was time to look for new representation,” she continues. “FOIA'd emails during that time period have indicated that Mrs. Brubaker didn't seek out all board members in her advice proceeding with the name change [of Stonewall Jackson High School] and that she was working solely for the administration at that time. What emails have been given indicate that Marty Helsley was left out of the process.” “I have tried unsuccessfully to obtain copies of those email correspondence between counsel and the administration and board at that time and have been denied. Mrs. Brubaker oversees our FOIA responses."
The Northern Virginia Daily

UVA students voted by a four-to-one ratio to pass a referendum to the Honor constitution in early March. This historic vote — which reduces the sanction of expulsion to a two-semester leave of absence — marked the largest change to the Honor system since its inception over 150 years ago.  It has not been a quick or easy road to change — this term, the Committee struggled with reaching quorum, internal debates and in-fighting and ultimately how to reconcile the past of Honor with the future of the Committee.  As outgoing representatives grapple with what to do in light of the momentous change granted by the student body’s vote, incoming representatives are preparing to take office. However, no Honor Committee meetings will be held for the rest of the term, per an email sent by Andy Chambers, chair of the Honor Committee, Monday. In the email, Chambers wrote he believes the group is a “lame-duck” Committee and that he plans to leave the task of passing appropriate bylaws to the newly-elected representatives in early April. As such, Chambers said that he does not plan to call any additional meetings of the Committee before the end of his term. 
The Cavalier Daily
 

stories of national interest

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed an executive directive 2022-3, requiring the State of Michigan departments to accept credit card payments for any fees associated with the production of records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Officials say this directive builds on efforts spearheaded by Attorney General Dana Nessel and her late Communications Director Kelly Rossman-McKinney to promote transparency.
NBC25

Tennessee Comptroller Jason Mumpower said Tuesday that he will be taking control of the finances of Mason, Tenn. a majority Black town of about 1,500 people located within five miles of the future site of Blue Oval City, the Ford electric truck and battery plant that represents one of the largest manufacturing investments in the state’s history. The Comptroller’s move comes over the objections of Mason’s elected officials, who have been fighting to maintain control over their town since Mumpower issued an ultimatum last month: either cede control of Mason’s 153-year-old charter or face a financial takeover by the state.
Governing

 

editorials & columns

`

Oklahoma’s attorney general joined top law enforcement officers in 13 other states this month in suing the Biden administration over delays in getting information under the federal Freedom of Information Act. But in Oklahoma, the state’s transparency law doesn’t have defined time limits for responses by state and local governments, leading to protracted delays for many requesting public records. On the flip side, those in charge of finding and providing public records have pointed to overly broad requests and inadequate staffing or funding as causes of many delays. The state’s guidance under the Oklahoma Open Records Act is a “prompt and reasonable” standard, which in practical terms can mean anything from the same day to weeks, months or even years depending on the complexity of the request.
Oklahoma Watch