Transparency News 9/21/16

Petersburg’s treasurer says his strategy of publicizing the names of delinquent taxpayers in a local newspaper is working, and he plans to release another wave of names — a strategy that has infuriated some residents. Kevin A. Brown on Tuesday defended his controversial strategy that he says has helped him collect at least $2 million in unpaid taxes since he had the names published in The Progress-Index in April. But the city’s total delinquency still stands at about $8 million in unpaid real estate and personal property taxes.
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Charlottesville City Council has solidified new rules for public speakers at council meetings, implementing a lottery system that encourages the public to sign up for slots in advance. Monday’s 4-1 vote in favor of the new procedures came on the heels of a six-month trial period where those wishing to speak during the public comment period at the start of meetings were allowed to sign up days in advance and 12 speakers were chosen using a lottery system. Previously run on a first-come, first-served basis, the public comment rules, as well as a slew of other council meeting procedures, were changed earlier this year.
Daily Progress

On Monday, the Charlottesville City Council unanimously agreed to begin developing an open data policy aimed at promoting transparency and community engagement in municipal government. The council approved a resolution that directs city staff to develop procedures for making government datasets available online in “machine-readable” formats. By definition, open data is free, has no legal restrictions on its use and does not require registration to download.
Charlottesville Tomorrow


National Stories
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A woman accusing NBA star Derrick Rose of rape cannot remain anonymous at her upcoming civil trial, a Los Angeles judge ruled Tuesday. Lawyers for the woman, who is identified in court documents as Jane Doe, argued that her privacy should be protected because she is vulnerable and she has already been harassed after her name was leaked. U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald said the law was very clear on the issue and he wouldn't close his courtroom to protect her identity. He said any decision by the news media about whether to name her is a journalistic decision.
Fox News

Public discussion of the Edward Snowden case has mostly been a dialog of the deaf, with defenders and critics largely talking past each other at increasing volume. But the disagreements became sharper and more interesting over the past week. "Mr. Snowden is not a patriot. He is not a whistleblower. He is a criminal," wrote the members of the House Intelligence Committee in a startling September 15 letter to the President, urging him not to pardon Snowden, contrary to the urging of human rights groups. "The public narrative popularized by Snowden and his allies is rife with falsehoods, exaggerations, and crucial omissions," the House Intelligence Committee wrote in the executive summary of an otherwise classified report on Snowden's disclosures. Remarkably, however, the House Committee report itself included numerous false statements and misrepresentations, according to an analysis by Barton Gellman, who had reported on Snowden's disclosures for the Washington Post. "The report is not only one-sided, not only incurious, not only contemptuous of fact. It is trifling," wrote Gellman, who identified several apparent errors and falsehoods in the House Committee summary.
Secrecy News

Editorials/Columns

State government in Virginia spends $200 million a year on travel. If the money were distributed evenly that would work out to almost $2,000 per state employee per year. But the money is not spread out evenly. As a new report from the Auditor of Public Accounts shows, colleges and universities soak up three-fourths of travel reimbursements. Virginia Tech and U.Va. are the biggest spenders by far, consuming tens of millions of dollars each. VCU comes in a distant third.
Richmond Times-Dispatch

Lawyers and clients often confront the question of when communications relating to both nonlegal and legal advice may be covered by the attorney-client privilege. Court decisions in this area have not always provided consistent guidance. A dispute concerning a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request directed to the Connecticut Resource Recovery Authority (CRRA) (now the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority) provided the Supreme Court with the opportunity to directly address the proper standard for determining when the privilege covers mixed-purpose communications. In Harrington v. Freedom of Information Commission, 323 Conn. 1 (officially released Sept. 6), the court held that to be fully covered by the privilege, a communication must explicitly or implicitly seek specific legal advice and the advice must be the primary purpose of the consultation. If the proponent of the privilege cannot satisfy that standard, it may still be entitled to redact incidental legal aspects of the communication. Harrington provides needed guidance on how courts and the Freedom of Information Commission should address mixed-purpose communications. Nevertheless, we can expect many disputes over the application of the governing standard to specific issues that arise with some frequency.
Erick M. Sandler, Connecticut Law Tribune