PIA

Deadline for entering Spirit of FOI Award contest is Friday

FOIFT2015-05-04T15:07:56-05:00

Texas journalists have until Friday to enter the 2015 Spirit of FOI Award contest, which recognizes outstanding efforts to promote open government and the First Amendment. This year's contest is open to newspaper, radio and television stations and online news organizations. Entries must have been published or broadcast in 2014. Winners will be honored at the FOI Foundation of Texas annual conference Sept. 17 in Austin. Click here for contest details. The deadline for entries is midnight Friday, May 8.

Deadline for entering Spirit of FOI Award contest is FridayFOIFT2015-05-04T15:07:56-05:00

Private college police bill among open government proposals this week at Texas Capitol

FOIFT2015-04-30T14:55:12-05:00

The Texas House Higher Education Committee heard testimony this week on Senate Bill 308, which would make private college campus police records accessible to the public. Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, sponsored the measure in the House. The bill originated with Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, following a videotaped beating of a man by Rice University police. The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas and other open government advocates are supporting the bill. On Wednesday, before the House committee, Dallas Morning News reporter Melissa Repko and KPRC-TV reporter Robert Arnold of Houston testified, respectively, on their experiences covering police at Southern Methodist University [...]

Private college police bill among open government proposals this week at Texas CapitolFOIFT2015-04-30T14:55:12-05:00

Open government bills moving forward, getting hearings at Texas Capitol

FOIFT2015-04-24T15:21:12-05:00

This week Texas legislators were busy hearing bills both good and bad for open government and freedom of information as end-of-session legislative deadlines loom. The House Judiciary and Criminal Jurisprudence Committee approved HB 1766 by Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, that allows for continued reporting by the news media on third party allegations of wrongdoing. The Senate, meanwhile, passed its version of the bill, SB 627 by Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston. These bills are positive for the public's right to know. A rough bill for open government is HB 1118 by Rep. Mike Schofield, R-Katy, which would allow government officials to [...]

Open government bills moving forward, getting hearings at Texas CapitolFOIFT2015-04-24T15:21:12-05:00

UT regent asks attorney general for access to confidential information

FOIFT2015-04-21T15:29:01-05:00

By Matthew Watkins The Texas Tribune Originally published April 20, 2015 When he abstained from voting to appoint Gregory Fenves as the new president of the University of Texas at Austin on Monday, UT System Regent Wallace Hall said he still had some "lingering, unresolved questions" about the admissions process at the flagship school. Hours later, Hall's lawyer requested help from the state attorney general to find some answers. In a letter to Attorney General Ken Paxton, Hall's lawyer says Hall wants access to supporting documents and evidence that was used to compile a consultant's report about the admissions policies at [...]

UT regent asks attorney general for access to confidential informationFOIFT2015-04-21T15:29:01-05:00

Texas lawmakers consider shielding information on suppliers of execution drugs

FOIFT2015-04-16T16:01:27-05:00

By Paul Weber Associated Press via Laredo Morning Times Originally published April 15, 2015 AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Saying that executions in Texas are becoming "increasingly difficult to carry out," state officials Wednesday urged lawmakers to send Republican Gov. Greg Abbott a bill that would prevent even death row inmates from knowing the identity of lethal injection drug suppliers. The debate in the Legislature took place just hours before the sixth person this year was set to die in Texas, where the nation's busiest death chamber is again running low on inventory. The office of Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton told [...]

Texas lawmakers consider shielding information on suppliers of execution drugsFOIFT2015-04-16T16:01:27-05:00

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