PIA

Appeals court panels rules El Paso did all it could to retrieve officials’ emails

FOIFT2014-08-05T15:15:30-05:00

By Marty Schladen El Paso Times Originally published Aug. 4, 2014 A panel of appellate judges sitting in Austin has thrown out a lawsuit claiming that the city of El Paso has refused to release public records related to the controversial ballpark project. The activist bringing the suit, El Paso lawyer Stephanie Townsend Allala, now is deciding whether to appeal the ruling to the entire Third Court of Appeals, her attorney Bill Aleshire said in an email. The ruling, dated Friday, said that the city did all it could to retrieve emails by city officials related to the ballpark project in [...]

Appeals court panels rules El Paso did all it could to retrieve officials’ emailsFOIFT2014-08-05T15:15:30-05:00

Change in sheriff’s public information policy poses access problems

FOIFT2014-07-22T14:31:11-05:00

By Karen Antonacci The Monitor Originally published July 20, 2014 When the story of an appeals court judge arrested July 12 after failing a sobriety test broke later that afternoon, local media ran with the only photo they had of her — a coiffed glamour shot that graced her 2012 campaign signs. Nora Lydia Longoria, who was elected in 2012 to the 13th Court of Appeals, where she serves a 20-county area with four other justices, looks much different in her mug shot —tired with bloodshot eyes. The picture was included in a news release the McAllen police department issued Monday [...]

Change in sheriff’s public information policy poses access problemsFOIFT2014-07-22T14:31:11-05:00

Abbott stands by transparency record some say is mixed

FOIFT2014-07-21T15:51:22-05:00

By Terri Langford The Texas Tribune Originally published July 17, 2014 Ask Texas Attorney General and Republican gubernatorial hopeful Greg Abbott about his record on providing the public greater access to government records and he will tell you it is one worth bragging about. He has aggressively pursued open records training for state and elected officials, and been honored for his work keeping Texas government transparent. “There really is no attorney general who’s had a greater proven record of achieving more transparency and more openness than myself,” Abbott told The Texas Tribune in an interview last week. But open government advocates find the transparency record of [...]

Abbott stands by transparency record some say is mixedFOIFT2014-07-21T15:51:22-05:00

Editorial: Abbott’s policy on public access to chemical information illogical

FOIFT2014-07-07T14:47:31-05:00

Austin American-Statesman Originally published July 6, 2014 When it comes to defending Texans’ right to know what their government is doing, state Attorney General Greg Abbott has been not just a watchdog, but a biting dog. During his political career, Abbott has demonstrated a commitment to government transparency second to no other current statewide elected official. In 2005, he was awarded the James Madison Award by the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas. Abbott spoke these memorable words then: “Texas functions best when public officials recognize that government does not belong to them but to the people.” (To read the rest [...]

Editorial: Abbott’s policy on public access to chemical information illogicalFOIFT2014-07-07T14:47:31-05:00

Editorial: Kilgore College transparency threatened by records tactic

FOIFT2014-07-02T20:56:28-05:00

By Longview News-Journal Originally published July 2, 2014 Kilgore College’s practice of sending every open records request to its attorney for review is almost breathtaking — and not in a good way. In an era that’s seen almost every taxpayer-funded entity in the nation looking for ways to reduce spending, this is a conscious — and utterly unnecessary — decision to spend more. The attorney who benefits from billing, at $195 per hour, to review the requests must know his services are not needed for this task. If he doesn’t, it may be time for the college to find another attorney. [...]

Editorial: Kilgore College transparency threatened by records tacticFOIFT2014-07-02T20:56:28-05:00

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