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By Kelley Shannon  Sunlight is starting to break through at the Capitol in the final month of the Texas legislative session. Open government measures have won passage in the House of Representatives with bipartisan support, and more House votes are scheduled on legislation championed by the broad-based Texas Sunshine Coalition. However, this transparency legislation is still waiting to be heard in the Senate. Action is needed soon in the upper chamber to protect Texans’ information rights before the Legislature adjourns June 2. It’s simple: Access to information builds public trust in government. House members approved House Bill 4219 by Rep. Giovanni [...]

By Kelley Shannon Executive Director FOI Foundation of Texas  What unites Texans of all political persuasions is the nonpartisan principle that our government must operate in the sunlight. We have the right – and responsibility – to keep watch on how tax money is spent and how public officials make decisions. But it takes access to information to do it. Our state transparency laws envision citizens having power over government. Every legislative session, updates and improvements are needed so that the Texas Public Information Act and the Texas Open Meetings Act function as intended. The Texas Sunshine Coalition, representing 16 organizations [...]