If nothing else, Access 2002, VCOG's fourth annual conference, may have foreshadowed what's to come in the next gubernatorial election.

Attorney General Jerry Kilgore, who is expected to be the Republican nominee for governor, kicked off the conference with a 30-minute speech about open government initiatives he pushed last year and hopes to see through this year, including auditing campaign finance disclosure reports and requiring lawmakers to account for how they spend their office allowance.

At lunch, Lt. Governor Tim Kaine, the expected Democratic nominee, discussed many of the same issues, noting that this year he hopes to persuade the House to televise their sessions and both houses to televise their meetings. He also hopes to impose a rule banning gifts to lawmakers similar to the one the U.S. Congress operates under.

Rob Baldwin, the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia, next updated the audience on the progress of the joint subcommittee studying the protection of information contained in court records (see cover page). Martha Steketee from the National Center for State Courts then reviewed the model rules proposed by the Conference of Chief Justices and Conference of State Court Administrators (related story).

One panel, moderated by VCOG Executive Director Frosty Landon, studied the relationships (both positive and negative ones) government forms with citizens and the press. Governor Warner's press secretary, Ellen Qualls, herself a former reporter, said she surprised herself when, during discussions of 700 possible layoffs, her first thought was, "how can we cover this up?".

Bill Beck, mayor of Fredericksburg, described the wranglings he and some of his fellow council members have had with former council members and some citizens (related story). He said he thought FOIA was being used for harassment.

Mark Flynn of the Virginia Municipal League said tone is the most important factor in local government's external relationships.

Jeffrey Kerr, counsel for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, recounted the saga between PETA and the Virginia Beach Marine Science Institute over access to records related to the proposed building of a dolphin tank PETA opposed.

FOI Advisory Council Executive Director Maria Everett says that despite the annoyance of citizens who are looking for conspiracy theories and the press who might slant stories, she advises government to remember the Golden Rule. FOIA is all about relationships, she said.

Prior to Kaine's lunchtime speech, VCOG presented its annual FOI awards. Liz Szabo of the Virginian-Pilot received the media category award for her story revealing the Board of Medicine's failure to discipline errant doctors (related story).

Outgoing VCOG president Bob O'Neil received the Laurence Richardson award. In presenting the award, VCOG's incoming president, Paul McMasters, read tributes from those who have worked closely with O'Neil, both through the Coalition and from his work as founding director of the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression.

O'Neil accepted the award with obvious emotion. He recounted the origins of VCOG, beginning in 1995 at a Richmond hotel and singled out some of VCOG's most ardent supporters for praise, notably Frosty Landon, who "is VCOG," according to O'Neil.

The first afternoon panel, though saddled with the decidedly un-sexy title of "Access to Bulk Data," was nevertheless very well received.McMasters moderated the panel, which started out with Jerry Cerasale of the Direct Marketers Association talking about the good reasons why businesses need access to public records. They protect consumers by making sure personal information is correct and up to date. Also, it allows business, especially start-ups, to find people who are interested in certain products and services.

Fairfax County Clerk of Court John Frey spoke of the bind he and his fellow clerks currently face about putting land records with Social Security numbers and signatures online. He acknowledged beneficial uses some information has for title companies or judgment collectors, for example. He questioned why some information was even collected in the first place in some instances, and also advocated stiff penalties for identity theft.

Daniel Nestel of Reed-Elsevier Inc., parent company of Lexis-Nexis, listed the many ways in which the public good is served by databases compiled and maintained by his company's subsidiaries. He reviewed some of the approaches other states are taking towards balancing public access versus personal privacy, noting that the mood since Sept. 11 is to scale back on access.

Tracy Smith demonstrated the service VIPNet offers to subscribers who want access to name and address databases maintained by government agencies such as the Department of Health Professionals. Citizens can also run queries, she said.

The day's final panel, on access to the records of a government executive, such as a mayor or a governor, was moderated by VCOG board member and Ferrum College Librarian Cy Dillon. Prompted by the dispute over Gov. Jim Gilmore's gubernatorial records, no one directly involved in that dispute could participate in the panel because the matter was still in mediation.

Richmond Times-Dispatch reporter and columnist Jeff Schapiro nonetheless gave a thorough run-down on what each side was claiming and what the prospects were for resolution. (The parties announced a settlement the next week. Related story.).

Immediate past-president of the National Association of Government Archives and Records Administors, Jeanne Young, described similar controversies around the country, from Utah's governor declaring that e-mail was not a record, to Rudy Giuliani putting his mayoral records into private storage, to President George W. Bush's executive order modifying the release schedule of past presidential records (which would have affected records of Ronald Reagan's two terms in office, when Bush's father was vice president).

Retired VCU history professor James Moore wrapped up the panel with pointed but humorous stories of how throughout Virginia history there have been attempts to censor the past, from the Fish and Game Commission to former governors. He noted that smoking guns or schemes are rarely unearthed.

Most of the comment cards gave the conference and the conference facility high marks. Without the generosity of the Virginia Press Association and its dedicated staff, not to mention the panelists who took time out from their busy schedules, those comments could not have been possible.