Freedom of Information

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Public schools, private budgets

July 21, 2011
Chicago Reader

Charter schools are the fastest-growing part of Chicago's public education system, but how they spend our tax money is mostly a secret
By Ben Joravsky and Mick Dumke

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Kelley confirms ruling requiring disclosure of police files

July 20, 2011
State Journal Register

By BRUCE RUSHTON
THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER
   
A Sangamon County judge confirmed Wednesday that Springfield cannot keep police internal-affairs files secret in an alleged harassment case.

The city had argued that the documents should remain confidential under a clause in the Freedom of Information Act that allows public bodies to withhold documents that are considered preliminary or that contain opinions.

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Our View: Attorney General right to pursue FIOA denial (Editorial)

June 25, 2011
Freeport Journal Standard

We’re pleased to see the Illinois Attorney General’s office asking questions about Freeport Township’s response to a request for financial records through the Freedom of Information Act.

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Illinois’ data website: Lots of numbers, few answers

June 23, 2011
Illinois Statehouse News Service

 By Benjamin Yount

On Illinois’ new data website, people can learn that the beach at the Conservation Club 100 in Marion County is a private beach on a lake.

Or that in the second quarter of 2010, Rock Island County saw $449 million in retail sales.

Or that two neighborhoods on Chicago’s south side and one on the west side lead the state in lottery ticket sales, each topping $20 million this year.

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Openness under attack (Editorial)

June 7, 2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Legislators and the state Supreme Court should err on the side of open government.

Wisconsin's tradition of open government is under siege in the Legislature and in a case that the state Supreme Court may consider. Legislators and the state's Supreme Court justices should err on the side of openness.

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Bid to limit access to finance information draws fire

June 4, 2011
Gannett Wisconsin Media

Officials' records only would be available to public in Madison

By Ben Jones
Gannett Wisconsin Media

MADISON — Public access to information about the finances of state officials would be limited under a provision recently passed by a state budget-drafting committee.

The action has drawn fire from open government advocates, who say the measure would make it harder for the public to ensure their lawmakers don't have conflicts of interest.

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Mayors, watchdogs at odds over changes to Illinois FOIA

June 3, 2011
WBEZ

by Illinois Public Radio

Mayors across Illinois are praising a possible change to the state open records law.

The measure addresses people who submit more than seven requests per week under the state's Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA. Patrick Kitching is the mayor of south suburban Alsip. He says some people abuse FOIA requests to sap the town's time and money.
 

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Changes to records law won't change much locally

June 3, 2011
Champaign Urbana News Gazette

 Patrick Wade
SPRINGFIELD — Changes to the state's Freedom of Information Act which would remove a requirement that government agencies seek permission before denying the release of records and add a layer of protection against "recurrent requesters" passed both houses this week and await Gov. Pat Quinn's signature.

Locally, officials say it will not change a whole lot about how they release records.

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Prolific freedom of information filers try to shed some light

April 12, 2011
Southtown Star

By Lauren FitzPatrick and Steve Metsch

Their names are well-known to village clerks. Their freedom of information requests pile up. They consider themselves active members of society, self-appointed watchdogs who want to know how their tax money’s being spent. Some share the data with others, some use it for lawsuits, some simply want to keep a watchful eye on government and understand how their tax dollars are being spent.

Mostly, they just want to know.

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FCC Fines Of $10,000 to $14,000 for Broadcast Public File Violations - Discovered By FCC Inspections

May 26, 2011
Broadcast Law Blog

In several recent cases, the FCC issued big fines to stations that had significant gaps in their public inspection files - fines of between $10,000 and $14,000.  Unlike many other recent public inspection file fines, these fines did not arise from self-reporting of violations in a license renewal application, nor were they discovered as a result of a complaint from a disgruntled listener or competitor.  These fines also did not arise in connection with the discovery of other violations at the stations.  Instead, these fines were the result of FCC inspections - inspections tha

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