Transparency News 1/23/18

 
VCOG LOGO CMYK small 3
Tuesday
January 23, 2018
spacer.gif
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
divider.gif
 
state & local news stories
quote_1.jpgFollow the bills we follow on VCOG annual legislative chart.
Yesterday, a House subcommittee announced it would hear a slew of FOIA bills today. The official meeting start time is two hours after adjournment of the full General Laws Committee, which starts 1/2-hour after the House adjourns for the day. That probably means 3:00 at the earliest.

View the docket here.

And look for livestreaming from EyesOnRichmond.org

A planned Richmond City Council vote on a contested plan to expand water service to Chesterfield County was delayed Monday evening after the sound system in council chambers broke, emitting a long string of high-pitched buzzing noises. Initially, the council attempted to work through the disruption, but after the issues continued, City Council President Chris Hilbert adjourned the meeting, citing concerns that neither members of the public gathered in the chamber nor the television audience could hear the proceedings.
Richmond Times-Dispatch
divider.gif
stories of national interest
Hawaii Gov. David Ige told reporters today that part of the delay in notifying the public that the Jan. 13 ballistic missile alert was a false alarm was that he did not know his Twitter account password.
Governing

Kansas lawmakers are condemning the practice of municipal government and school board members resigning from office with the expectation of being quickly reappointed to a different vacancy to artificially extend their terms. Members of the Legislature have expressed bipartisan disapproval for the insider deals, but haven't put forth a bill to forbid or limit.
McClatchy

 
 
quote_2.jpgHawaii governor says he didn't respond to erroneous missile strike message earlier because he forgot his Twitter password.
divider.gif
 
editorials & columns
quote_3.jpgEmails showed an illegal fantasy baseball pool operating with judges and the prosecutor’s office staff.
At a time when the input of residents is vital in determining how growth is overtaking the county, the Loudoun County Board of Supervisors has voted to avert late-night voting sessions by limiting public input at its regular business meetings to 30 minutes. This is the same board that, just a few months ago, voted to increase supervisors’ salaries by more than 60 percent. It’s the same board that continually turns a deaf ear to to citizens who express their concerns and positions over a range of issues. That makes the decision to limit public input at the county’s official business meeting both deaf and dumb.
Loudoun Times-Mirror

Transparent government in Madison County, Illinois, seems to be getting more opaque, or at least hazy from several sources of smoke and heat. State’s Attorney Thomas Gibbons and his Madison County Public Corruption Task Force came swooping in Jan. 10 to grab computers from the county worker who used to handle Freedom of Information Act requests. Then the current FOIA office is subpoenaed for a representative to appear before a grand jury on Thursday. Here’s what everyone should really, really hope is not happening in Madison County. Hope they are not trying to punish those who released embarrassing e-mails from Gibbons’ staffers that showed an illegal fantasy baseball pool operating with judges and the prosecutor’s office staff in 2012 and using county resources to send invitations to a political fundraiser for state Sen. William Haine, D-Alton.
Belleville News-Democrat

 

Categories: