Date 05/29/02

Contact: FOIFT office, (214) 977-6658

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FOIFT to Co-Sponsor Open Government Symposium in College Station

The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, in collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General of Texas and the Texas Association of Regional Councils will sponsor the first Open Government seminar Wednesday, June 12, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.   The seminar will be held at the Hilton Hotel, 801 University, in College Station.   Open Government 2002: A Symposium on Access to Public Information and Open Meetings in Texas will include in-depth discussions of the Texas Public Information Act and the Texas Open Meetings Act.

Open Government is a traveling symposium designed to develop and enhance understanding of the changing landscape of an open government. Sessions will address hot topics in public information and open meetings laws. The symposium is directed toward the general public, government employees, elected officials and representatives of the media. Each symposium will feature experienced attorneys and others knowledgeable in this important area of law.

Presenters for this seminar will include Austin attorney David Donaldson, Michael Garbarino from the Attorney General's Open Records Division, and Rick Gilpin from the Attorney General's Opinions Division.

The seminar is free, but early registration is recommended due to limited space.   No meals will be arranged or provided as a part of the seminar, but a 90-minute lunch break will be included in the schedule.

For questions, call the FOIFT office at (214) 977-6658.   To register, call TARC at (512) 478-4715, or complete a registration form available on the FOIFT web site at www.foift. o rg , and fax or mail TARC at (512) 478-5014, 1305 San Antonio, Austin, TX 78701.  

The State Bar of Texas will award five (5) MCLE credit hours per Open Government seminar attended.   Other Open Government seminars this year will take place in Tyler (Aug. 9) and El Paso (Oct. 25).

The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas works to encourage, sponsor and facilitate a greater appreciation, knowledge and understanding of the First Amendment. By educating media and legal professionals, educators, students, public and government officials and individual citizens about their rights and responsibilities as citizens, the FOIFT strives to preserve the freedoms necessary in a democratic republic.

The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization supported through grants from private citizens, corporations, foundations and tax deductible donations. For more information, call (214) 977-6658, or visit our web page, www.foift.org .

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