Idaho transparency headlines

From Sunshine Review

This article is a list of transparency related news from Idaho.

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Divisions	State | List of Counties | List of Cities | List of School Districts |
Government	Idaho State Constitution | Executive | House of Representatives | Senate |
Judiciary	Idaho Supreme Court | Judicial Nominating Commission | Judicial news | Judicial activist organizations |
Ballot Measures	2008 ballot measures | List of ballot measures | Procedures for qualifying an initiative | Amending the constitution | History of direct democracy | Campaign finance requirements |

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Ketchum clarifies policy on records requests
January 7, 2009: The Ketchum City Council voted to clarify an ordinance that allows the city to waive fees related to public records requests.

At a meeting on Monday, the council approved a resolution that created a policy to help guide the council's deliberations on whether to grant a fee waiver for such requests.

Idaho law requires that the fees be waived if a requester demonstrates an inability to pay or would "suffer by the assessment of the fee." Read the full article here.

Canyon County denies Kuna Melba News public records request
January 2, 2008: The Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has denied a public records request for the sent e-mails of Canyon County Commissioner Steve Rule, stating the e-mails don't exist.

The Kuna Melba News filed two separate requests on Dec. 15 and 29 under the Freedom of Information Act and Idaho Public Records Laws.

The Kuna Melba News filed the requests after it came to light that Rule had sent out a joke e-mail about Michelle Obama, comparing her to a black widow spider. Read the full article here.

Washington, Idaho rank far apart on openness
November 14, 2008: A new national survey ranks Washington fourth in the nation for governmental integrity, openness and accountability – and Idaho 44th.

The survey, conducted by the Chicago-based Better Government Association, compared open records laws, open meeting laws, whistleblower laws, campaign finance requirements and conflict-of-interest laws, to create a government “integrity index.” Read the full article here.

Our View: Kempthorne shares blame with state law
August 6, 2008: Dirk Kempthorne is lurching toward releasing papers from his seven-year tenure as governor - a mere 27 months after leaving office.

No one can accuse the governor-turned-interior secretary of rushing into this one.

The problem rests not just with Kempthorne, but with state law. Idaho code contains no guidelines and sets no deadlines for the release of the archives. Read the full article here.