South Carolina transparency headlines
From Sunshine Review
This article is a list of transparency related news from South Carolina.
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| Report It • | The Good • | The Bad • | The Ugly | |
Rec Commission Continues to Evade Public Disclosure
"One of the issues the Richland County Recreation Commission board has been talking about behind closed doors, and refusing to identify before doing so, apparently has come to light — the retirement of commission director Lewis Leopard.
No less, the commission, a special-purpose district critics assail as an unaccountable fiefdom, is being tight lipped about Leopard’s retirement package, too.
As reported exclusively in Free Times on April 1, the commission board is engaged in a practice that appears to violate the S.C. Freedom of Information Act."
FOI case in Anderson moves forward
"An attorney for Anderson County is seeking to have a lawsuit thrown out that contends the county did not follow the state’s Freedom of Information Act rules.
Attorney Kurt Gibson filed paperwork Monday asking that the lawsuit contending that Council Chairman Eddie Moore did not follow FOIA guidelines be dismissed."
Bluffton holds second closed session
"The Bluffton Town Council met again Tuesday in a closed-door session that was described only vaguely, despite a requirement in the state's Freedom of Information Act that public bodies announce the specific reasons for secret meetings.
The meeting came a week after the council held a similar closed-door session without announcing the specific reason.
The FOIA states that a public body must say specifically why it is going into executive session before doing so. Opinions from the state attorney general's office underscore that requirement.The opinions, issued in 1988 and 2004, were provided by the attorney general's office last week."
Public bodies cannot act outside of the law
"A representative democracy cannot function in secret.
The state Freedom of Information Act specifically forbids secrecy, and outlines a number of ways that the public's right to know supersedes a government body's desire for secrecy.
Bluffton Mayor Lisa Sulka and the Town Council need to study the Freedom of Information Act. Bluffton needs to hire a town attorney who knows the law and appreciates how important it is for public officials to obey the law. Town attorney Terry Finger gave the Bluffton Town Council bad advice Tuesday when he told the council it could thumb its nose at the Freedom of Information Act."
Businessman adds lawsuit against Anderson County
"Another lawsuit against Anderson County was filed Monday afternoon.
The suit, filed in Anderson Circuit Court, claims that Council Chairman Eddie Moore, in his official capacity, refused to follow the Freedom of Information Act and missed a 15-day deadline on a request for public information.
It could not be determined at press time how many lawsuits are now pending against the county, but at least a half-dozen have been filed since the new council took office in January."
SC Audits and information
"School districts shouldn't have to pay for additional audits when a more open spending process would produce the necessary result.
State Rep. Joey Millwood has introduced a bill that would force school districts to pay the Legislative Audit Council to study their spending. He wants the council to audit 20 percent of the state's school districts each year.
Millwood's bill is a response to the news of spending at Spartanburg County School District 7, where parents and taxpayers were distressed to learn that the district had made an agreement to pay $325,000 to the Country Club of Spartanburg so district golf teams could play there."
Scott’s suit against SJS dismissed
"A judge has dismissed a lawsuit by former state Sen. Randy Scott that sought to block the Summerville Journal Scene from obtaining tapes of closed hearings held last May during Scott’s DUI trial.
Despite the dismissal, however, the Journal Scene still has not obtained the audio recordings."
Will the S.C. House protect integrity of election process?
"The results of the Minnesota Senate recount are still in doubt two months after the election because of questionable decisions being made by the Minnesota Canvassing Board. But South Carolinians need not look beyond their borders for such political high drama.
The Palmetto State boasts its own electoral soap opera, complete with inaccurate voter registrations and a state election commission that refuses to enforce the law."
City Council discusses Willowbank condo lawsuit
"Just a bare quorum of Georgetown City Council met in a special meeting Thursday afternoon to discuss one of several lawsuits. The specific case being discussed was the Willowbank condos lawsuit.
Another series of issues with Thursday's meeting had to do with apparent violations of the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Executive sessions are permitted for the purpose of receiving legal advice. However, an executive session has to come after a formal opening of a meeting of a governing body, such as a City Council. Members must vote in public to go into executive session, and when that session is concluded the Council members must return to a public session and specifically state that no votes or actions were taken while in executive session.
None of that happened Thursday afternoon."
Sheriff to stop limiting records access
"The Beaufort County sheriff says he'll give the media reasonable access to crime reports on weekends and holidays after the South Carolina Attorney General's office said limiting access to weekdays violated the state's open records law.
The Island Packet of Hilton Head and The Beaufort Gazette had objected to a new policy Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner adopted in November that blocked the media from looking at reports on weekends and holidays when administrative office are closed. Reports are processed by administrative staff who work Monday through Friday, Tanner said."
