North Carolina transparency headlines
From Sunshine Review
This article is a list of transparency related news from North Carolina.
Editorial: City records policy must stress accessibility, accountability
January 7, 2009: The city of Greensboro generally does a good job of making information available to the public. But not always.
As Denise Turner, filling the new position of assistant city manager for communication, works on a public-records policy, her priorities should be access and accountability.
The city's Web site already is an excellent source of information. Viewers can click on "media/public records" and find news releases, reports and other items of interest. What's not so apparent is where to go or whom to call for something else. Read the full editorial here.
United Way records delayed
January 6, 2009: United Way of Central Carolinas Inc. is delaying the release of information regarding former chief executive Gloria Pace King’s expense records.
The volume of the expense reports, and the complexity of preparing them, are greater than anticipated, United Way lawyer Russell Sizemore says in a letter to the local news media. That has caused a delay in the release of the information, which had been slated for early this month. Read the full article here.
City working on records request policy
January 2, 2009: The city could soon have a new, more user friendly way of issuing public documents.
In August, the Greensboro Neighborhood Congress asked the City Council to improve the speed, transparency and uniformity of the city’s response to requests for public records.
That task has fallen to Denise Turner, the new assistant city manager for communications, who hopes to develop a policy by February. A new system could include deadlines for responding to requests. Read the full article here.
Put teeth in state open records law
December 30, 2008: As plainly worded and strongly supported as they are, North Carolina’s open government laws are too often ignored, skirted and flouted by local and state government.
How else does one explain the refusal by the town of Fletcher last summer to say how much it had paid its embattled police chief, Langdon Raymond, as it showed him the door.
How else does one explain Fletcher’s refusal to release all the reports, investigations and evaluations of its police department (paid for by taxpayers), despite intense public interest in the management of the local law enforcement agency. Read the full editorial here.
Instead of open records, empty promises abound
December 23, 2008: Both Gov. Mike Easley and Attorney General Roy Cooper can give a heck of a speech about open records, open meetings and transparency in government. It all sounds quite promising.
But when it comes time to producing information that belongs to the taxpayers who provide the bulk of the state's $20 billion-plus annual budget, the promise of transparency becomes murky, bordering on opaque. What the public is likely to get in some cases is a form whose most important information has been blacked out. Read the full column here.
Reports of death, rape allegation censored
December 19, 2008: As reports of patient beatings and deaths in state mental hospitals have mounted, the man charged with fixing the system has repeatedly pledged to increase transparency.
But as Dempsey Benton nears the end of his time as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, his department is becoming less transparent, not more.
His subordinates are increasingly relying on broad interpretations of patient privacy restrictions to block public access to information about hospital deaths and reported abuse. Read the full article here.
Swain DSS denies records request on twins
December 4, 2008: The Swain County Department of Social Services declined to release any records that could show whether workers had warnings of abuse before 4-month-old twin boys were hospitalized with broken legs and toes.
The department cited confidentiality laws in response to a public records request from the Asheville Citizen-Times for a case summary. The document would disclose any actions or services rendered following an abuse complaint to social workers.
The newspaper will ask today for a judge to force the release of a case summary should the department have had any previous contact with the babies. Read the full article here.
County's online records are safety risk, expert says
October 23, 2008: Issues between online safety and public information collided recently before the Guilford County Board of Commissioners when a woman recommended that the register of deeds shut down its online records.
“The issue is one about Internet safety, and I am an Internet safety expert,” said Linda Criddle of Washington state, president of Look Both Ways online safety consulting. Read the full article here.
Agencies getting county money now must open records, meetings
October 9, 2008: Any agency or non-profit organization getting $5,000 or more in public funds from Rowan County will now have to open its records and its meetings under a new policy adopted this week by the Rowan County Board of Commissioners.
The policy also includes a provision that makes it a conflict of interest for the board or agency to do business with any member of its board of directors.
County commissioners voted unanimously Monday to approve the policy, which ties funding to compliance with the N.C. Open Meetings law and a modified version of the state's public records law. Read the full article here.
Jobs group will show records; officials want to see how county funds were spent
August 16, 2008: Leaders of Rowan Jobs Initiative have reversed course and decided to provide county officials with records covering the four years the nonprofit organization has existed.
Earlier this month, top officials of Rowan Jobs refused to provide copies of minutes and other records. Instead, they offered to meet with commissioners one at a time and allow them to review some records. Read the full article here.
Sunshine deficit on Oak Island
August 8, 2008: Oak Island residents must be doubting the caliber of their town's leadership. They certainly have good reason. Four police department employees have resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment and sexual discrimination, while a builder says he was forced to sue the town for public documents about his own project.
Just what is going on? Read the full editorial here.
N&O lawyers press attorney general on court records
August 8, 2008: Lawyers for The News & Observer have asked state Attorney General Roy Cooper to abide by state law and order his staff to make dozens of court documents that were sealed Tuesday available for a reporter's inspection.
Hugh Stevens and Amanda Martin, lawyers for The N&O, reminded Cooper of the statute that he helped draft when he served as a member of the state General Assembly. Stevens and Martin wrote to Cooper that his staff violated the law by asking for a seal. Read the full article here.
DWI cases sought by N&O sealed
August 7, 2008: Less than 24 hours after a News & Observer reporter asked to review dozens of DWI cases being held in a safe in the Johnston County Courthouse, a judge heeded a request from the state Attorney General's Office to seal the records. Read the full article here.
Oak Island has not fulfilled contractor's request for records
August 6, 2008: Eleven months and one lawsuit later, Brian Keesee still has not received all the public documents he has requested from the town of Oak Island.
Last September, the Oak Island builder requested documents, e-mails and other correspondence between staff members about a condominium project Brian Keith Keesee Construction Inc. - "BKK Construction" - built three years ago on Southeast 58th Street. Read the full article here.
Commissioners, Rowan Jobs Initiative at odds over records
August 5, 2008: Rowan Jobs Initiative, a nonprofit agency which has received county funding, is refusing to turn over records to the county.
In response, commissioners have agreed to consider a new policy that will require any agency receiving county funds to comply with state open meetings and public records laws. Read the full article here.
Gov. Easley signs park records bill, 25 others
July 29, 2008: On the eve of his shoulder surgery, Gov. Mike Easley signed 26 bills into law, including a measure limiting the information local park and recreation boards must release under the state's open records law.
The park records measure, which takes effect immediately, removes from state records considered public the names, birth dates, addresses and contact information of children enrolled in local park programs. Read the full article here.
General Assembly fails to advance the cause of accountable government
July 22, 2008: North Carolina residents who believe in access to public information (and we'd like to think that's all of us) have reason to feel disappointed about the General Assembly's recent session. Not only did the cause of transparent and accountable government fail to advance, it actually lost some ground. Read the full article here.
Judge dismisses lawsuit against NC treasurer
July 21, 2008: A judge on Monday dismissed a public records lawsuit against State Treasurer Richard Moore that claimed he withheld documents about the state's pension fund, ruling there wasn't the evidence to let the case continue. Read the full article here.
Joe says no
July 18, 2008: If someone with an inquisitive streak wants access to public records from, say, a local government or state agency that doesn't want to give them up, the fight can be long and expensive. Sometimes, the legal bills run to the tens of thousands of dollars, even if the public's right to such records under North Carolina law ought to be obvious.
Yet as things stand now, those people who successfully sue the government over access to records are at the mercy of judges, who may or may not award adequate fees to be paid by the losing party. Read the full editorial here.
Hackney blocks bill on legal fee recovery
July 17, 2008: News organizations and members of the public who have sued to gain access to public records will still need a judge's approval to be reimbursed for legal costs.
House Speaker Joe Hackney said Wednesday that he does not support legislation that would make "reasonable" legal fees automatically payable to those who win public records suits against state and local governments. Read the full article here.
Local government officials must stop skirting N.C. laws on open meetings, public records
July 17, 2008: As hot as it's been, you'd think there's been no shortage of sunshine lately, unless you take into consideration our county and town governments. The "sunshine " to which I'm referring is a term for North Carolina's open meetings and public records laws, or "sunshine laws," which were created to allow public and press open access to the meetings and records of government bodies. Read the rest of this editorial here.
NC Senate OKs plan to strengthen open records law
July 14, 2008: A plan proponents say will increase compliance with the state's public records law has been approved by the Senate.
The chamber unanimously approved the open government bill on Monday. Read the full article here
Open records bill advances in NC Senate
July 8, 2008: A measure designed to strengthen compliance with the state's open records law won the backing of a Senate judiciary committee Tuesday.
The plan would guarantee that citizens and organizations successful in suing government agencies for access to information receive compensation for their legal costs. Current state law grants judges the leeway to decide whether to require governments to pay the victorious parties' legal bills. Read the full story here.
Maintaining Freedom isn't a spectator sport
July 4, 2008: Tuesday, July 8th, the North Carolina's Senate Judiciary I Committee will begin debate on Senate Bill 2064 — the Open Government Act of 2008.
The principal features of Senate Bill 2064 are automatic recovery of attorney fees for citizens who sue and win public records claims over violations of the public records law. The bill also includes a provision that could eliminate the vast majority of the cases that are based on ignorance of the law rather than a willful attempt to circumvent it. Read the full story here.
McCrory says records request "fishing expedition"
June 27, 2008: Republican gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory says a public records request by the North Carolina Democratic Party is a "fishing expedition." Read the full story here.
Public-records bill voted down in state Senate
June 26, 2008: The state Senate voted today not to accept a House-passed bill that would exempt children participating in local recreation programs from the public record. Read the full story here.
Public records laws can’t be treated cavalierly
June 25, 2008: Government efforts to keep information on matters of public concern from the public can rarely be justified.
Whatever the reasons given, the result will invariably be detrimental, ranging from wild rumors and unfounded suspicions that distort reality to simple ignorance that leaves people vulnerable to harm. That places a heavy burden on those seeking to withhold information to justify such requests.
It’s a burden District Attorney Michael Bonfoey’s office failed to meet when it asked that the 911 tapes reporting the shooting of Trooper David Shawn Blanton Jr. not be released. Read the full story here.
Judge orders 911 tapes released
June 24, 2008: A judge today ruled that recordings of 911 calls made about the shooting death of N.C. Highway Patrol Trooper David Shawn Blanton Jr. are public record and should be released.
Superior Court Judge Mark Powell said releasing the recordings would not hurt the state's or defendant's right to a fair trial. Read the full story here.
Recreation records bill passes House
June 24, 2008: The House has approved a bill that would exempt identifying information about children participating in county and city recreation programs from public records.
John Bussian, a lobbyist for the N.C. Press Association, which opposes the bill, said he's hoping the Senate won't agree to the bill. Read the full story here.
Recreation program public records bill passes subcommittee
June 18, 2008: Efforts to keep identifying information about children who participate in local recreational programs cleared a subcommittee on Wednesday.
The bill would exclude from the public record identifying information of a minor, such as the minor's name, address, age, date of birth, telephone number, name and address of the minor's parents and any other information on an application to participate in a recreation program. Read the full story here.
NC state employees' group denies bribe attempt
June 12, 2008: The legal fight between State Treasurer Richard Moore and a state employees' group that has criticized his stewardship of the state employee pension fund turned ugly Thursday as Moore's attorney accused the group's lawyer of offering a bribe.
In an emergency motion filed by his attorney, Moore asked that a public records lawsuit filed against him by the State Employee Association of North Carolina be dismissed because of "unethical and illegal conduct" by the association and its attorney, Tom Harris. Read the rest of the article here.
