Transparency News 3/28/19

Thursday
March 28, 2019

state & local news stories

 “FOIA should not be viewed as a burden to any local government employees. It’s our responsibility,” says Fairfax Countywide FOIA Officer Amanda Kastl.

An event at CitySpace on Monday evening is working to prepare members of different boards and commissions in Charlottesville to better understand certain legislation. The public forum on Monday, March 25, was meant to teach people about the Freedom of Information Act in Virginia.  Organizers say it's important to foster a "spirit of transparency and openness" among the city's boards and commissions. "I think, surprisingly, some people who sit on boards and commissions may not know it's their responsibility under FOIA to uphold those parts of the law,” Lucas Ames of Smart Cville, said. “I think it's probably the biggest misconception, but also trying to get past it as a 'gotcha' moment and more as sort of something that can move toward more transparency and trustworthiness in the political culture here locally."
NBC29
(Note: VCOG's Megan Rhyne and Charlottesville City Attorney John Blair were the FOIA presenters.)

A civil lawsuit filed by the Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority states that former EDA director Jennifer McDonald and ITFederal developer Curt Tran used “all or a portion” of a $10 million loan for “their own personal benefit.” The filing states that websites for three companies - ITFederal, V.D.N. Systems and ACRC - with which Tran is associated “all appear to be bogus” and “created to convey a false impression” that the companies were “active businesses with a substantive source of income with the intent of fraudulently inducing the Warren EDA to make the ITFederal loan.” The filing states that there is no evidence the companies had the capacity to support a $40 million project.  It also states that McDonald provided the EDA board with information “that presented a positive financial impression” of the three companies but nobody was allowed to make copies of the information nor was anyone "permitted to otherwise verify its accuracy or completeness.”
The Northern Virginia Daily
The Warren County Commonwealth’s Attorney's Office requested Wednesday that Judge Clifford Athey Jr. empanel a special grand jury regarding the investigation of possible criminal activity based on the actions of former Front Royal-Warren County executive director Jennifer McDonald, according to a news release from that office. The release states the office has been working since August 2018 with the Virginia State Police “as they investigated suspicious financial activities.” The release adds that the $17.6 million lawsuit filed Tuesday by the EDA against nine defendants regarding financial improprieties raised issues of which the state police were unaware. The lawsuit came after the EDA recently heard a final report from an unidentified financial consultant regarding the authority’s money. The county has so far paid that consultant $160,000 on behalf of the EDA. Interim EDA Director John Anzivino via email denied a freedom of information act request seeking a copy of that final report, citing “investigations which are on`going into the authority’s finances.”
The Northern Virginia Daily
(Note: VCOG will have a panel on economic development secrecy at its April 11 conference. Click here for details.)

At a public forum Wednesday night, interim Police Chief Angela Greene said she didn’t know the former chief was going to resign last week — or what led to it. Answering questions from residents, Greene said she has not experienced racism in the department that former Chief Tonya Chapman described in a letter this week and that she would not stand for it in the department. Greene addressed residents for the first time in a public setting since Chapman’s resignation. The meeting was part of a regular series held by the chief to update the public on crime statistics, but nearly all the questions concerned Chapman’s exit. More than 100 people filled a room at the department’s training building, most of them police officers.
The Virginian-Pilot

Every spring, residents across Lynchburg watch and listen as city council debates, discusses and ultimately balances the following fiscal year’s budget. Now, citizens can take the task on themselves with the city’s Balancing Act tool. The online program — available on the city’s website at www.lynchburgva.gov — allows users to change funding allocations for the proposed fiscal year 2020 budget of $408.1 million.
The News & Advance

Loyalty. Diversity. Eco friendly initiatives.  Those were just a few items on Staunton residents' wish list for their new city manager. Community members gathered in the City Hall Council Chambers Wednesday evening with speeches in hand, ready to tell Staunton City Council members what they wanted from the new city manager. Instead of hiring a search firm, council hired Nancy Bowman, a local resident who recently retired from her career in human resources. Bowman, who will do the job for $60 an hour, sat in the midst of the residents who had varying opinions on what they expected from the new city manager. 
The News Leader

In 2018, Fairfax County received 8,469 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests — an average of 34 requests per working day.  And the volume and complexity of FOIA requests that the county receives continue to increase. The Office of Public Affairs has three staff positions dedicated to overseeing the county’s FOIA response process, though many departments and agencies also receive and respond to requests directly. The Office of the County Attorney and the Department of Information Technology also have dedicated positions to provide legal advice and search electronic files, respectively. To help organize and streamline the county’s response process, the county implemented a custom-made centralized tracking application last year. This tool, in part, helped the county average a response time of three business days for all FOIA requests. “FOIA should not be viewed as a burden to any local government employees. It’s our responsibility,” says Amanda Kastl, countywide FOIA officer.
Fairfax County
(Note: Included in this story is the video of the March 15 training session the county presented with the FOIA Council's Alan Gernhardt that drew people from all over the state.)

stories of national interest

Four “Heroes of the 50 States” — representing California, Georgia, South Dakota and Texas — will be inducted into the National Freedom of Information Coalition’s Open Government Hall of Fame for 2019. The inductees have backgrounds in journalism, local government, law and academia. The Open Government Hall of Fame recognizes long-term contributions of individuals to open government in their respective states. Specifically, induction recognizes the “long and steady effort to preserve and protect the free flow of information about state and local government that is vital to the public in a democracy.”
NFOIC

The Chicago Police Department released its file on the investigation into the alleged hate crime against Jussie Smollett on Tuesday, one day after all charges facing the "Empire" actor were dropped. Police released the information in response to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted by CWBChicago. Chicago police’s FOIA office has been inundated with similar requests for weeks. “These files were provided by the Chicago Police Department in response to a FOIA request that CWBChicago submitted upon learning that the Cook County State's Attorney's Office had reached a sealed agreement to resolve Smollett's criminal exposure in the case … Our requests for video, including bodycam, surveillance, and interrogation, was denied," CWBChicago said on its website.
Washington Examiner

A massive fire broke out in a museum of rare manuscripts in St. Louis, provoking fears over the fate of its priceless documents, officials and media said on Wednesday, although the extent of the losses was not immediately clear.
Reuters

 

"Our requests for video, including bodycam, surveillance, and interrogation, was denied."

editorials & columns

"Until more details are forthcoming, county residents won’t know whether to be excited about the possible new development — or apprehensive."

We do have hints from an Albemarle County Board of Supervisors document made available to attendees at Supervisor Ann H. Mallek’s town hall meetings. If you’re into mysteries, see what you can do with these clues: » The county is referring to the possible development as “Project Patriot.” Perhaps Project Patriot is such an amazing opportunity that Albemarle would be foolish not to snag it. Perhaps county taxpayers would wholeheartedly support the transfer of funds as part of an incentive package to attract the development. But, unfortunately, taxpayers are unable to render a judgment on any such choice (even if the county were to offer it) — since they lack adequately detailed information about the development. Sure, many details about pending developments must be closely held in order to prevent information leaking to competitors or inappropriately influencing stock prices, to cite just a couple of examples. But as many details as possible should be made available to the public, as soon and as often as possible — which is what Ms. Mallek’s handout sheets seem to have been intended to accomplish.  Until more details are forthcoming, county residents won’t know whether to be excited about the possible new development — or apprehensive.
The Daily Progress

A U.S. District judge signed off on a $3 million legal settlement between the jail and the family of 24-year-old Jamycheal Mitchell who died in 2015 while being held at the regional jail. Reforms that ensure prisoners medical needs are being met are clearly needed, yet mental health advocates believe the same song and dance are taking place despite everyone’s better judgment. We could not agree more about the sense of urgency needed to address these shortfalls because the potential for harm — as it exists under present circumstances — can’t possibly be overstated. The state Board of Corrections is also taking up the issue. Its members are considering new standards for health care in jails that would force jails to submit quarterly reports that would then be published online. Transparency is one piece of this complex puzzle. It would be beneficial to shine a light on areas of the penal system that have been dark for too long.
Daily Press