Transparency News 9/12/16

 

Deaths from antibiotic-resistant "superbugs" are more common than people realize and not closely tracked by most states, including Virginia, according to a year-long Reuters investigation published this week. The report, titled in part "The deadly epidemic America is ignoring" leads off with a child's death in a Richmond neo-natal unit in 2010. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus — more commonly called MRSA, a drug resistant bacteria — spread to nearly every child in the unit, Reuters said. A death certificate issued in the wake of this outbreak didn't note MRSA's role. And by law, state health department documentation, to this day, cannot publicly name the hospital where the outbreak occurred. A Virginia law, meant to protect people and facilities from criminal and civil liability when they report infectious diseases, actually forbids health officials from identifying facilities publicly. Even records from years ago are redacted to remove this information.
Daily Press

Slowing down the last-minute flood of campaign donations ahead of the General Assembly is worth considering, a senior legislative leader said. Senate Majority Leader Thomas K. "Tommy" Norment Jr., R-James City, said he believed that $227,000 of illegal in-session donations over the past five years reflected oversights and careless handling. The Daily Press first reported the figures in late August after a review of campaign finance records. The records also showed legal donations to legislators' campaign funds in the last two days before the General Assembly convened totaled more than $1.8 million over the past five years. "I do believe maybe we should modify the law to provide for a 10, or even more, day lockout period before session when we cannot accept donations," he wrote in an email.
Daily Press

There’s now one place to visit if you’re looking for sales information in your Virginia Beach neighborhood, trying to figure out which day trash is picked up or wanting to see how much a parcel is worth. The city’s online property search tool has received an overhaul with new features that make it more user-friendly. The update was 18 months in the making. Residents and prospective homeowners can now visit the site, type an address and see an array of data about the property. The program shows the value of the parcel, any improvements made, sales history and what city services are nearby. Most properties also include a street view photo and aerial images. For the more advanced, a query can be run by neighborhood, ZIP code or square footage.
Virginian-Pilot

Hopewell is one of only four Virginia localities that have not filed their Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for fiscal year 2015, even nine months after the state’s deadline, according to state public records. If the city can meet its most recent target of having the report completed and reviewed by external auditors by Oct. 18, the document will be filed with Virginia’s Auditor of Public Accounts Office barely one month before the FY2016 report is due — a looming deadline that Hopewell City Manager Mark Haley said Thursday “obviously” wouldn’t be met.
Progress-Index



National Stories
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New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says he is prepared to go to court to fight a Freedom of Information lawsuit filed by NY1 and the New York Post. The battle centers on the mayor’s refusal to release emails with five outside advisers known as "agents of the city." One of the advisers, Jonathan Rosen, has a consulting firm that represents many clients with business before the city.  De Blasio says the advisers should effectively be treated like city employees and protected from certain Freedom of Information Act requests, even though they are not paid by City Hall. 
NY1