NSA whistleblower goes free

After the prosecution of National Security Agency whistleblower Thomas Drake collapsed from felony-level charges to a plea bargain for a misdemeanor, Drake was sentenced to one year probation and 240 hours of community service July 15.

Judge Richard D. Bennett criticized the Justice Department for dragging out its investigation of Drake for years before dropping the bulk of the charges just days before the trial was to begin.

For a detailed account of Drake’s sentencing, check out this New York Times article.

The Government Accountability Project has also published a transcript of Drake’s statement to the press following his sentencing.

British Columbia first provincial gov to start open-data site

The government of British Columbia made almost 2,500 datasets publicly available Tuesday when it launched its open-data website.

Although much of the information was already previously available, the website makes it easier to access, according to a Vancouver Sun article.

British Columbia has also adopted an open-data license that will allow programmers to use government information without fear of being sued.

The province will also start posting FOI-requested data online here after the requester has had a minimum of four days to review the information beforehand – a caveat that will let reporters cover stories before others can gain access to the data.

For more information on this open government initiative, see this article from the Globe and Mail.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26)

N.J. court requires public officials to reveal cell phone call locations

Location, location, location.

That can’t stay secret when it comes to cell phone records, according to a New Jersey court ruling.

Public officials using taxpayer-funded cell phones must disclose the destination of the calls they make because such information is helpful to the public interest, according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.

The court case, Livecchia v. Borough of Mount Arlington, arose after after the borough redacted the locations of calls made by public officials when it filled resident Gayle Ann Livecchia’s records request.

Livecchia and other citizens can use the phone call locations, which must now be disclosed, to find out whether government employees are improperly using their work cells.

Federal task force to evaluate gov websites

Federal CIO Vivek Kundra revealed the names of 17 people who will comprise a .gov task force that will slim down government websites and evaluate potential policy adjustments for running such Web properties in the future.

Those appointed include IT professionals from various federal offices, according to a Government Tech blog post.

This task force complements President Obama’s “Campaign to Cut Waste,” which aims to cut unnecessary expenditures.

This includes paring down the 2,000-plus federal URLs in use.

Here’s a list of 1,759 top Web domains for the executive branch, as well as a Q&A page on the project that includes a list of all task force members.

Gov demands ACLU return classified doc

The federal government wants a judge to order the American Civil Liberties Union to return a classified document that was released to the organization detailing how employees decide which Afghanistan detainees are Enduring Security Threats.

The ACLU must respond to the government’s court filings by July 29, according to the Washington Post’s Checkpoint Washington blog.

The ACLU wants to post the document, which it says was improperly classified, to its website.

The Pentagon gave the organization the document, along with several others, in compliance with a court order requiring their release. The ACLU notified the government about the Afghanistan detainee document on May 25.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

ESPN suing Ohio State for records withholding

ESPN has sued The Ohio State University for withholding records regarding an NCAA investigation into its football program.

The suit, filed Monday, accuses the university of breaking state public records law, according to The Associated Press. ESPN wants the Ohio Supreme Court to force OSU to release the requested public records and cover court fees.

The university allegedly cited a federal student-records privacy law, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, that wasn’t applicable in this situation when it denied ESPN access to various records.

Requested records included emails between former Buckeyes coach Jim Tressel, who resigned in May, and a mentor to former OSU quarterback Terrelle Pryor, according to the Columbus Post-Dispatch’s buckeyeXtra.com.

FERPA is designed to ensure student educational records remain confidential, but it is often misused to wrongfully keep records private. SPJ’s online Reporter’s Guide to FERPA has more information on dealing with records roadblocks and related issues.

Vivek Kundra lays out his key points on open government

Vivek Kundra, the Federal Chief Information Officer, testified before a subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Thursday on government transparency issues.

In his testimony, Kundra mentioned 10 key principles for transparency that he said would serve as helpful guidelines in assessing the federal government’s $3.7 trillion budget.

Kundra’s major points included the importance of using common data standards and ensuring equal access to data.

For more, read Kundra’s entire testimony. You can also see his 10 principles listed without the extra information in this Sunlight Foundation blog post.

Kundra plans to leave his government position in August for a Harvard University Fellowship.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

Editorial argues against lax ethics disclosure rules under new governor

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam’s first official act was to relax ethics disclosure requirements for public officials – a move the Tennessean criticized in a July 10 editorial.

Under the new rules, Haslam and his aides must provide information about their sources of income, but not about the financial worth of that income or their investments.

The editorial raised an important point: that disclosures of both income sources and amounts allow the public to get a better picture of who their officials are.

Knowing where officials’ money comes from and their past business interests, as well as how much money they are making, can provide important clues as to how they will lead in public office.

Tennessee residents only have half the picture right now due to Haslam’s new ethics requirements. They can see the source but not the amount, but they have the right to know both.

The Tennessean has called for Haslam to rescind his January executive order relaxing disclosure requirements, which would show the people of Tennessee that their right to know is respected in the governor’s office.

FOI in Pakistan: Editorial calls for enactment of FOI law in Punjab

The provincial government of Punjab in Pakistan has a draft bill that would give its citizens greater access to data about their officials and the quality of the public duties they perform – if it’s ever implemented.

The Punjab Freedom of Information Act 2010 has not been enacted into law yet. The government has put it to the provincial assembly for approval – a move that Zahid Abdullah, an employee for the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, argued in an editorial is indicative of the government’s desire to postpone the act’s adoption.

Provincial Law Minister Rana Sanaullah has said his government is waiting for a federal information law to be passed so the provincial bill can complement the spirit of the national legislation, according to the editorial.

Abdullah countered this argument with the insistence that because the right to information is now included as a constitutional right for Pakistani citizens, Punjab should become a role model for other provinces by passing a freedom of information law that reflects this right.

He also called for the draft bill to extend the ability to access government information to all Pakistani citizens. It currently authorizes such access only for Punjab residents.

For more information on the fight to get Punjab’s FOI bill enacted, peruse some of the recent press releases on the Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives website.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

For decades, the U.S. military covered up a secret that may have harmed thousands of Marines and their families.

A documentary called “Semper Fi: Always Faithful” reveals this dangerous secret: From 1957 to 1987, thousands of Marines based at Camp Lejeune were exposed to contaminated water that included organic compounds that were at levels of up to 280 times higher than the legally safe limit.

Although news of the contamination came to light in 1987, the Marine Corps kept it quiet for years afterward.

Camp Lejeune is located in N.C. and is the largest Marine base on the East Coast, and many Marines have either died or lost family members to cancer and other problems. Some children have been born with major birth defects or have developed leukemia, according to a Project on Government Oversight article.

The Semper Fi documentary, filmed by Rachel Libert and Tony Hardmon, follows Marine Corps Master Sgt. Jerry Ensminger during his fight to find answers about what happened at Camp Lejeune that may have led to his 9-year-old daughter’s death from a rare form of leukemia.

This film, which won two awards at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, shows how important it is to hold the government accountable for its actions and to fight for the truth even if it takes years to get it.

Ensminger’s tireless work has caused change, with legislation in Congress to provide health care for people exposed to the Camp Lejeune contamination. Another bill, known as the Janey Ensminger Act, is named for Ensminger’s 9-year-old daughter.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

Today the U.S. Supreme Court gets a gold star by ruling unanimously that votes cast by elected leaders do not constitute personal speech protected by the First Amendment.

The case involved a Nevada legislator who argued that he is entitled to vote how he wants, even regarding matters where he has a conflict of interest and got cross-ways with state ethics rules. The court said no way – that elected leaders’ votes are part of their business duties, not personal speech. (See a good summary by Reporters Committee, which submitted an amicus brief).

If the court ruled the other way I could see elected officials in this country arguing that open meeting laws are unconstitutional because they infringe on their ability to speak freely. That’s what city council members argued in Texas – that the state open meeting law suppresses their personal speech. Also, thankfully, in March a U.S. District Court ruled that the Texas open meeting law doesn’t violate the First Amendment rights of elected leaders (see Asgeirsson v. Abbott  summary).

I’m glad the U.S. Supreme Court nailed the coffin shut on this crazy concept. Clearly, the First Amendment was written to protect citizens’ speech rights from government intrusion, not to protect government from its citizens!

Michael Morisy, co-founder of MuckRock.com, has filed hundreds of public records requests on behalf of citizens and journalists in this past year.  Check out the site and what they’ve accomplished!

You can look at the records they’ve requested, the actual request letters, and stories produced from the documents. You’ll get great ideas to enhance your own reporting.

And then make sure to make it to the national SPJ conference in September, where Morisy is planning to participate on an access panel (“Records of Disaster”), with Pulitzer-prize winning environment reporter Mark Schleifstein from the New Orleans Times-Picayune. It ought to be a great talk!

In D.C., lawmakers fight back against draft exec order

Bills in the House and Senate could preempt a draft executive order by President Obama that would force federal contractors to disclose their political contributions.

The legislation would prohibit the federal government from both collecting and using data about federal contractors’ political expenditures. The House also passed an amendment May 25 to the 2012 defense bill to ban federal departments from collecting such information.

Obama’s draft executive order has received support from open government groups, but has also faced opposition from businesses and members of Congress from both parties.

Calif. universities embrace transparency (with a few caveats)

California State University and the University of California have agreed to withdraw their opposition to public disclosure of campus foundation finances through a compromise with state Sen. Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) and various public records supporters.

While state university officials didn’t want to reveal how campus foundations manage almost $2 billion, the compromise allows them to protect the identities of most donors.

The call for disclosure by campus foundations gained media attention in 2010 when CSU Stanislaus hired former Alaska governor and former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin to deliver a speech at a fundraiser but wouldn’t disclose the amount she received until a judge ordered the contract be made public.

CSU and UC will not oppose Senate Bill 8, which was introduced by Yee and would make campus foundations and other operations, such as campus bookstores, to function under the California Public Records Act.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

Our pre-Memorial Day award for FOI Fail of the Week goes to the British court system’s injunction practices, which have been rocked this week by the revealing tweets of citizens.

Ryan Giggs, a soccer star, got a court injunction preventing media outlets from publishing the allegations he faces of having an affair with a reality television contestant.

His injunction is known as an “anonymized injunction,” where news outlets can publish information about him as long as his name is withheld.

The gag order didn’t keep Giggs’ identity a secret, however, as people posted his name and joked about his supposed indiscretions on Twitter.

The case has centered attention on “super-injunctions,” used in Britain to forbid journalists from both writing about something and also from writing about their inability to write in the first place. (Go back and read that again if you need.)

When Giggs’ attorneys insisted Twitter reveal the people behind the Internet campaign against the star, users spread the news even further.

Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt promised he would form a committee to review the rules for gagging orders and to assess potential alterations.

As for the odds of the Twitter users facing legal attacks for ignoring the injunction – well, they’re pretty slim.

With 75,000 people naming Giggs, British lawmaker John Hemming told Parliament that “it is obviously impracticable to imprison them all,” according to an Associated Press story.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).

NY TIMES REPORTER SUBPOENAED

A New York Times reporter and Pulitzer Prize-winner, James Risen, was subpoenaed by the U.S. Department of Justice for the trial of a suspected government whistleblower.

The accused leaker, Jeffrey Sterling, was indicted in December 2010 by a federal grand jury in Virginia. He is on trial for allegedly providing national defense information to Risen that appeared in a 2006 book called “State of War: The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Administration.”

No federal law exists that exempts journalists from testifying. Risen’s lawyer told The Associated Press he would attempt to have a judge override the subpoena.

The Society of Professional Journalists has, with other journalism groups and news outlets, pushed for a federal shield law in recent years. The proposed Free Flow of Information Act would protect journalists like Risen from turning over confidential sources and notes in federal cases, though there would be certain national security exceptions.

WISCONSIN

In Wisconsin, Media Trackers investigated voting practices during the April 5 election using open records requests.

From a small sample of registrations in 15 wards, Media Trackers found evidence of incomplete voter registrations and possible voter registration abuses.

Providing proof of residence for voters was a major problem uncovered by the records request. In one instance, a voter provided an acceptance letter from the University of Minnesota as a proof of residence, which wouldn’t be deemed acceptable under the guidelines by the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board.

– Morgan Watkins

Morgan Watkins is SPJ’s summer Pulliam/Kilgore Freedom of Information intern and a University of Florida student. Reach her by email (mwatkins@spj.org) or connect with her on Twitter (@morganwatkins26).