Iowa government corruption
From Sunshine Review
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Cedar Rapids, Iowa school employee charged with embezzlement
In Iowa, Cedar Rapids police say the 42-year-old May has been charged with first degree theft following an investigation.
May works in business services and is responsible for cash receipts. The district released that the police department made them aware of the possible embezzlement on August 18th. Subsequently, the district began an internal investigation. May is now on administrative leave pending her termination.
The district contacted the State Auditor's Office, asking them to conduct an independent audit, which could take several months. The missing funds from the embezzlement are covered by insurance.
Confusion over whether marriage license applications are a public record
"Confusion lingered among Iowa’s county recorders today over whether marriage applications completed by engaged couples qualify as public records, as Polk County and others have treated them.
Lawyers from the Iowa Attorney General’s office still had not answered the question late today, three days before a high-profile Iowa Supreme Court decision to legalize same-sex marriage takes effect."
Pared-down open records bill passes House
"A watered-down version of a plan to update Iowa’s open records laws was passed by the House today with promises from lawmakers that much more will be done in the future.
“This bill is not going to make everyone happy and it shouldn’t,” said Rep. Vicki Lensing, D-Iowa City, who led debate on the bill. “This is going to be a fluid, continuing process.”
Citizens who are refused public documents often either give up or are left spending thousands of dollars in attorney fees, supporters of the legislation have said."
Roughwood resident seeks public records
"Johnston city officials will gather documents and e-mail records about proposed rezoning of the Roughwood neighborhood after a resident requested all the public records related to the issue.
"We are going to go back and try and pull up as much information for him as we can," said Johnston City Manager Jim Sanders."
Changes to 'sunshine' law debated
"Greater secrecy in government records would result from some of the changes lawmakers have made to a bill dealing with open meetings and open records, according to the state ombudsman.
"Some of the amendments adopted last week pose a retreat from the amount of transparency and openness that currently exists in Iowa. It is just bad public policy," Ombudsman Bill Angrick wrote in a letter to key lawmakers."
Push more public records to Internet
"As with most everything today, when people want to do business with the government, the place they go is the Internet. They're discovering a mother lode of public information a mere keystroke away.
Government at all levels maintains vast warehouses of information, much of which is migrating from paper to digital form, and increasingly it is publicly available, free for the taking on the Internet."
Iowa gov starts using state e-mail after scrutiny
"In his first two years in office, Iowa Gov. Chet Culver rarely used his state e-mail account, relying instead on a private server and computer in what freedom-of-information advocates decried as an effort to skirt public records laws.
But after The Associated Press began questioning Culver aides about the matter, the governor changed his policy and has begun using his state e-mail account for public business."
State Republicans call for Iowa tax Web site
"The state of Iowa would have to launch a searchable Web site available to the public to catalog how tax dollars are spent under a bill proposed Wednesday in the Iowa Legislature.
Republican supporters in both houses of the Legislature said during a news conference at the Statehouse that such a Web site would allow for greater transparency in state government by turning all of Iowa’s citizens into budget watchdogs.
They likened keeping track of taxpayer dollars in Iowa to searching through a maze, but they said the proposed Web site would streamline the process."
Finish job: Pass open-government bill
"It's good that Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller has pledged to more aggressively enforce the state's open-meetings and open-records laws. That, however, does not mean the Legislature should abandon a bill nearly enacted last session that would go even further to keep government open to Iowans.
The attorney general has assigned a lawyer in his office to handle cases when local governments are accused of violating state laws intended to make government transparent to the public. Miller's office will consider enforcement actions based on complaints from citizens, either directly or forwarded by the Office of Citizens' Aide/Ombudsman, which reported receiving 275 complaints or questions from citizens about public meetings and records in 2008."
Panel proposes expanded privacy in public records
"Iowa governments would have greater authority to black out personal information from public records under proposals recommended by a legislative committee.
Advocates say the proposals would protect citizens from identity theft.
But opponents say the unintended results could be alarming, particularly if the public is unable to differentiate between, for example, a convicted sex offender and another citizen with the same name.
"The public has more to fear from government records containing information about them of which they are unaware than the release of information pertaining to them," said Bill Monroe, executive director of the Iowa Newspaper Association."
Attorney General's Office: Ensuring Open Government
"The Attorney General and Ombudsman enhance enforcement and compliance efforts relating to Iowa’s Open Meetings and Public Records laws. Attorney General Tom Miller today announced enhancements of his office’s role in enforcing the state’s open meetings and public records laws.
Miller said Tuesday that he has appointed an Assistant Attorney General to specifically handle such cases, and that he has reached out to media groups and others, inviting them to help by reporting violations. He said his office will continue education and outreach efforts in this area and he also asked the public to contact the State Ombudsman with complaints needing investigation."
Culver's staff sits on cuts list
"Gov. Chet Culver's staff has delayed sharing with Iowans a list of recommended budget cuts given to the governor from state departments, an issue being reviewed by the Iowa attorney general.
Iowans not only have the right to know, but also the need to know what state services could be cut before decisions are made so that the ideas may be publicly vetted, some groups say.
Culver is expected to cut as much as $40 million from the state's $6.1 billion budget next week, using the recommendations from department heads that he requested last month."
Redacting public records dangerous, lawmakers told
"Efforts to protect Iowans from identity theft could jeopardize access to public records and hamper background checks in hiring, open record advocates told lawmakers today.
“I might be accused of being schizophrenic on this subject but there are definitely challenges and I think the solution is the Legislature,” said William Angrick, Iowa Citizens’ Aide Ombudsman. “Our elected representatives and senators need to address what they think the best public policy should be.”"
Fired Administrator Files Open Records Request
"A former University of Iowa vice president who was fired in the aftermath of a sexual assault investigation has filed an open records request with his former employer.
Phillip Jones was dismissed in September."
Glenwood records access tab is $2,280, state says
"The Iowa Department of Human Services says anyone wanting access to selected e-mails about the decisions made at the troubled Glenwood home for the disabled will first have to pay $2,280.
Last week, The Des Moines Register asked for eight weeks' worth of department e-mails related to the state-run Glenwood Resource Center, where 10 residents have died this year.
In response, department spokesman Roger Munns said there were 6,850 e-mails that were potentially relevant to the Register's request made under Iowa's open-records law."
UI sues over public-records law
"The UI entered into a lawsuit with the Des Moines Register Tuesday, seeking clearer guidelines in regard to public-records requests.
The suit - filed on behalf of the UI by the Iowa Attorney General's Office - is in response to an Oct. 1 request by the Register, which asked the UI for all documents related to sexual assaults involving UI students within the past three years."
Democrats turn over Republican court files
"Iowa Democrats scoured public records and documented that several Republican Iowa House candidates have criminal charges in their backgrounds.
Then they provided a neatly labeled binder full of records to The Des Moines Register.
Republicans are furious that Democrats delved so deeply into their personal lives by poring over public documents on bitter small-claims cases, financial woes, child-support disputes and messy divorces."
Local TV station files petition asking city for e-mails
"KGAN-TV (Channel 2) is accusing the city of Cedar Rapids and the Cedar Rapids City Council of violating the Iowa Open Records Act.
Sinclair Acquisition IV, owner of KGAN-TV, is asking the city to turn over copies of e-mails sent to and from the e-mail accounts of all City Council members between the dates of June 11 and Sept. 9, according to petition filed Friday in Linn County District Court."
Index: Probe yielded 3,200 pages of documents
"The University of Iowa withheld hundreds, if not thousands, of pages documents in response to open records requests related to its handling of the Oct. 14, 2007, alleged sexual assault involving former Hawkeye football players."
Access to your government: A mixed bag
"The Iowa Freedom of Information Council's annual meeting takes place Friday in Des Moines, so it has me reflecting on the status of public access to government.
The bottom line: It could be worse, but it could be a whole lot better."
[edit] More information
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