Requesting public records in Wisconsin can sometimes mean waiting weeks, months and even longer for government officials and agencies to respond. What could help speed things along?
A few weeks ago, Wisconsin State Journal reporter Chris Rickert was using his cell phone to scan records in the office of the Dane County Clerk of Circuit Court, when an office staffer informed him that this was not allowed.
The state should be lauded for trying to make campaign finance information — famously a shadowy process with plenty of loopholes — more accessible to the public.
When a government tells you a record is being withheld, that is not the last word. It is one person’s reading, and sometimes it is wrong.
It’s hardly a controversial statement to say that police, who can arrest people and use force when necessary, should be held to a higher standard than the rest of us.
How can we fix these twin problems? If I were in charge (and I’m not), I’d put a strict deadline in the law and eliminate location fees altogether. But realistically, we are unlikely to see either reform.
The Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council has long posted a records request template on its website, wisfoic.org. It cites Wisconsin law and uses language to target your request and help you avoid surprise fees.
In advance of national Sunshine Week (sunshineweek.org), March 15-21, the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council has named the winners of its 20th annual Openness in Government Awards, or Opees.
Our country’s current fight over immigration enforcement is also a fight over government transparency.
WisconsinEye needs to raise $250,000 (three months of its operating budget) to bridge the financial gap and allow state Capitol programming to resume.