foia
Secrecy added to Arkansas public records law serves only those with secrets
This commentary was updated at 5:25 p.m., Sept. 16, 2023, to correct the day when the Legislature submitted the bill to the governor. This week’s hastily called — and unnecessary — special session of the Arkansas Legislature yielded some ugly changes to the state’s sunshine law but also provided a shining example of democracy at […]
Arkansas officials’ security records shielded from public under altered FOIA law
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a law Thursday altering the state’s Freedom of Information Act, one of her stated goals of the special legislative session she called for this week. Senate Bill 10, which passed the Senate on Wednesday and the House on Thursday, shields from public access all records and communications concerning the […]
Bill to shield Arkansas officials’ security records moves forward
Arkansas lawmakers’ third attempt this week to alter the state’s Freedom of Information Act advanced in both the House and Senate on Wednesday. House Bill 1012 and Senate Bill 10 would exempt from FOIA all records and communications concerning the planning or provision of security services to the governor and other state elected officials. The […]
Lawmakers offer narrower change to Arkansas FOIA after bipartisan pushback
After two days of bipartisan backlash against proposed changes to Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act, lawmakers late Tuesday filed narrower legislation to exempt information related to security services provided to the governor and other state officials. It’s the third attempt in as many business days to alter the state’s 1967 public records law. The first […]
Tidal wave of opposition swamps Arkansas governor’s FOIA battleship
UPDATE: Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester late Monday night introduced a new version of the bill to add exemptions to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. It can be read here. Proposed new exemptions to Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act drew strong opposition across the political spectrum over the weekend, forcing legislative leaders to scramble […]
Lawmakers, public await promised replacement for controversial Arkansas FOIA legislation
UPDATE: Senate President Pro Tempore Bart Hester late Monday night introduced a new version of the bill to add exemptions to the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. It can be read here. This week’s special session of the Arkansas Legislature, expected to be a smooth-sailing three days, hit a major snag on day one when […]
Arkansas’ FOIA is The People’s Law, not government officials’ law
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin’s recent call to modernize the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act (AFOIA), along with Gov. Sarah Sanders‘ proposal for amendments during her announcement of the special legislative session, have each raised important questions about the balance between transparency and privacy in government operations. In her announcement of the special session, the […]
Reform Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act, improve our public safety
I would be described by most as a straightforward guy. That may be why I was drawn to a career in law enforcement. To fulfill our duty to protect and serve, we deal in commonsense ideas and simple truths. We are guided by a set of cut-and-dry rules. We don’t write or interpret law. We […]
Officials can’t say they serve the people while taking shots at the public’s right to know
Pardon me if you’ve heard this before: Arkansans’ right to know how their state and local governments operate is enshrined in a 56-year-old law called the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act. During this year’s legislative session, some lawmakers attempted to punch gaping holes in the FOIA’s defense against government secrecy, large enough to make much […]
Arkansas governor calls special session to alter FOIA, cut taxes
This story was updated at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 8, 2023, to include comments from the Arkansas Press Association. Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is asking the state Legislature to convene next week to cut income taxes, ban vaccine mandates for state employees and significantly curtail what state government records are available to the […]
A rare FOIA victory in Arkansas, thanks to the determination of the Times-Herald
Last month, the Times-Herald newspaper in Forrest City won a criminal case against the Palestine-Wheatley School Board brought against its members for meeting in secret to interview a candidate for interim school superintendent. That’s some rare good news for enforcing Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act, which protects the public’s right to observe public officials in […]
Arkansas lawmakers conceal a weapon against transparency in rushed, last-minute legislation
When is an ethics law unethical? When the law hides a significant, detrimental change to the public’s right to know. I’m talking about Act 883, which was filed in the last week of the legislative session and passed in less than a week. The central purpose of the law is to make sure local school […]