CalAware Today

Council Member: Our Emails Should Be Public

They don't call it a sunshine ordinance, but the Long Beach City Council has just approved proposals for a lot more information and citizen discussion online. And yet one council member—a co-proponent of the changes—points out that so long as she and her peers are free to confer and prearrange decisions using their private email accounts, all the new transparency initiatives are of limited comfort.

Berkeley Sunshine Ordinance Set for 2012 Ballot

After 10 years of discussion and 24 drafts, the residents of Berkeley will finally be able to vote on a proposed new transparency magna carta. Tonight the city council was scheduled to vote to place the “Berkeley Sunshine Ordinance,” a citizens’ proposal to make Berkeleycity government more open, on the November 2012 ballot.

Newspaper Has New Online Court Salaries List

By Anne Lowe

The Bay Area News Group has posted 2009 salary information for all judges and thousands of courtroom employees in the state. But foot-dragging by nine counties' courts, including Los Angeles, suggests that many judges are unhappy with the new transparency rules imposed on them from above last year by the California Judicial Council.

State Uses Press Veterans' Investigative Talents

By Anne Lowe

Newspapers have been hard-hit by technological advances and an uncertain economy. What happens to the journalists—many who are seasoned veterans—when the jobs disappear? For some it means continuing investigative digging and reporting—on the government payroll.

Alameda D.A. Suppressing Police Shooting Reports

By Anne Lowe

A Public Records Act request for district attorney’s reports on all officer-involved shootings in Alameda County was denied by District Attorney Nancy O’Malley last month, closing the door on access to this once-public document.

Transparency Lacking in State's Stem Cell Agency

By Anne Lowe

A taxpayer-funded agency responsible for the operation of a $6 billion venture into stem cell technology leaves much to be desired in terms of openness and accountability, according to its principal watchdog blogger.

Impact of Wikileaks on Federal Law Yet to Be Seen

By Anne Lowe

While U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates downplayed the international consequences of the most recent Wikileaks releases Tuesday, their impact may be most felt in terms of secrecy.

Local Agencies Warily Adapting to Social Media

By Anne Lowe

Local governments are slowly adapting to the world of Twitter, Facebook and blogging by starting new social pages for them to interact on with the public.The hyper-paced world of social media, however, makes complying with current law difficult for these agencies to accomplish.

L.A. Courts' Spokesman Says He Was Fired for TMI

By Anne Lowe

A recently fired public information spokesman for the Los Angeles Superior Court says he was terminated because of a conflict with administrators who wanted to “prevent or delay” the release of salary and other public information to the press—and who resented his advocacy of camera coverage of trials.

City's Copy Fee Mounts Quickly at 25 Cents/Page

By Anne Lowe

The City of Lindsay will be happy to comply with resident Steven Mecum’s Public Records Act request for copies of more than 35,000 pages—for more than $8,800, with $6,000 as an advance deposit.

CalAware: We'll Sue to Stop Mass Email Purging

By Anne Lowe

Californians Aware General Counsel Terry Francke has a message for the city of Lake Forest: Don’t execute a plan to destroy e-mails or you will be sued.

CalAware Challenges Email Destruction Policies

OPEN GOVERNMENT

By Anne Lowe

City attorneys in Orange County and representatives of Californians Aware are clashing over emails and their status under the law requiring cities to preserve records for at least two years.

Papers, Others Support Suit for Bar Exam Records

OPEN GOVERNMENT

By Anne Lowe

News organizations from across California filed a friend of the court brief Wednesday in support of the First Amendment Coalition’s suit for access to records of the State Bar of California, seeking Bar examination results for a study concerning the effects of affirmative action in law school admissions.  The matter is now on appeal.

Bill Would Ease Disclosure of Public Officials' Pay

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – State Senator Lou Correa told an October 20 legislative hearing on government transparency that he will introduce a bill that will make finding out local and state officials’ salaries easier.

Admission of Unlawful Secrecy Sought from City

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – A proposed lawsuit settlement between the City of Tulare and several of its residents has resulted in the resignation of the vice mayor and would also require that city officials admit violations of California open government laws.

Despite Promise, Budget Plan Hatched in Private

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – Assembly Speaker John Perez vowed in news conferences, on his website and in his recent inaugural speech that the California state budget would “not be written behind closed doors.” Late Oct. 1, the budget was written behind closed doors.

Critic: Wayward Judge Reports Kept too Vague

Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – Are yearly reports on judicial misconduct benefiting the public if key information revealing patterns is kept secret?

Governor Vetoes Campus Foundations' Sunshine

OPEN GOVERNMENT -- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has for the second year in a row vetoed a bill that would have required nonprofit foundations and other types of "auxiliary organizations"  closely associated with California State University and University of California campuses to open their  records to the public, reports the Central Valley Business Times.

Alameda Denies Wholesale Purging of E-Mails

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – The City of Alameda denied allegations Wednesday that city officials refused to comply with a Public Records Act request for e-mails initiated by a developer.

Berkeley Sunshine Ordinance Gets First Review

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – A work session on a proposed ordinance to increase public access to public meetings and records has been continued to January, the Berkeley Daily Planet reports.

Ten Promises Any Politician Can Make—and Keep

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT– Politicians are well-known for grand campaign promises that are quickly forgotten once elections are over. Californians Aware’s General Counsel Terry Francke says there are ten promises a candidate could make that could give him or her an edge over competitors—no matter wh at the office or the other issues may be.

Bill to Put Key Financial, Audit Data online Vetoed

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – A bill aiming to increase government transparency by requiring key financial information of state and local agencies to be posted in a central location on the Internet was vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Saturday—with something like a "been there, done that" rationale.

Father of Open Records Law Backs Yee's SB 330

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – A bill aimed at increasing accountability for university auxiliary organizations has gathered a wide base of support as it sits on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s desk—and supporters include the father of the California Public Records Act (CPRA) himself.

Union: Workers Comp Fund Board Too Secretive

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – The Service Employees International Union has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the State Compensation Insurance Fund (SCIF) due to a “lack of transparency” within the organization, which was recently made subject to the state's sunshine laws.

Sunshine Group Seeks Input on Evaluation Plan

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – A group that is preparing to audit the openness of federal agencies is seeking public reactions to its proposal.

Huntington Beach Council Reports: Buried, Late

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT – Documents related to Huntington Beach City Council study sessions have a history of being buried in late communications packets, an investigative report said today.

Yee: University Critics' Warnings Don't Hold up

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT -- Senator Leland Yee Wednesday rebutted as unfounded predictions by California public university officials that his SB 330, which would bring their non-profit campus auxiliary organizations under the California Public Records Act, would hinder those organizations’ fundraising abilities.

Court: State Secrets Justify Killing Torture Case

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT -- Ruling in San Francisco, the United States Court of Appeals dismissed a case filed by the American Civil Liberties Union today, citing national security as the reason it would not be heard.

State Official: Social Media=Government Openers

By Anne Lowe

OPEN GOVERNMENT -- Carolyn Lawson, deputy director of eServices for the State of California, recently talked to gov20.govfresh.com about the state’s efforts to bring more information to the public in the midst of a budget crisis, part of which is an effort to get its own people to get it.

A Hell Far Worse Than Bell

OPEN GOVERNMENT -- The story of official avarice in the city of Bell continues, astonishingly, to worsen. But it can’t compare with what Los Angeles County officials at the highest level are doing to avoid being brought to account for the suffering and deaths of helpless children.