It Takes a Village II (Editorial)
This week we praise the joint effort — even if neither coordinated nor fully intentional — of local media outlets to shed light on a puzzling situation involving the award of a $159 million state contract to an Indiana company. read more >
Arkansas Insurance Department Puts Out Feelers on New Space
The Arkansas Insurance Department may have its eye on a new office building. read more >
Let the Sun Shine (Editorial)
Arkansans have had the legal right to know more about what all levels of our government are saying and doing for longer than most other Americans, but legislators do keep chipping away at the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act — and refusing to adopt technology that could improve its service to taxpayers. read more >
Not Our Idea of Transparency (Editorial)
The issue of government officials using private email accounts has been much in the news, you may have noticed. read more >
John Goodson Helped Law Firms Get State Auditor Contract Potentially Worth Millions
State Auditor Andrea Lea agreed to pay inexperienced out-of-state attorneys a fee nearly twice as high as other states have committed to pay in a pursuit of unredeemed U.S. Treasury bonds. read more >
by Mark Friedman -
Freedom of Information at Work (Editorial)
We see the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act being chipped away at all the time. The right for citizens to know what their government knows and what their government does has to be protected vigorously. read more >
Prep Continues as David’s Burgers Flips River Market Location
The David’s Burgers location in Little Rock’s River Market District has run into some delays, but David “Alan” Bubbus Jr., owner of the burgeoning restaurant chain, is hoping it will be open by spring, maybe in April. read more >
New State Law Ends Public Reporting of Restaurant Revenues
The Arkansas General Assembly, in a move generating little publicity, last month enacted Act 1102, which exempts local option taxes, also called hotel-motel-restaurant or HMR taxes, from the state’s Freedom of Information Act. read more >
Drip, Drip, Drip (Editorial)
People again are chipping away at Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act. Does that mean that the Legislature is in session? Why, yes. Yes, it does. read more >
Mixed-Drink Sales Vital To Restaurant Bottom Lines
Since some cities have levied local taxes on sales of alcoholic beverages, a missing factor of our top-selling restaurants can be learned. read more >
by Jan Cottingham -
Of Wolves, Lambs and the FOI (Editorial)
The government (employees) owes taxpayers (employers) an accounting of how their money is spent. read more >
Your FOIA In Action (Editorial)
Without the state Freedom of Information Act — underused by most Arkansans — we wouldn’t know about the recent misuse of campaign funds by elected officials. read more >
US Supreme Court: State Can Block Out of State Use of FOIA
The Supreme Court ruled Monday that it's legal for a state to limit use of its Freedom of Information Act to its own residents. The court unanimously upheld a federal appeals court decision. read more >
by Associated Press -
Put Your Name On It (Gwen Moritz Editor’s Note)
My “recent unpleasantness” — that’s my euphemism for the fallout from my boneheaded stunt of releasing publicly the last legally acquired list of the state’s concealed-carry licensees — has reinforced my disdain for people who operate in the shadow of anonymity. read more >
by Gwen Moritz -
The War on Information (Editorial)
Arkansas’ Freedom of Information Act, one of the first and best in the country for creating transparent government and holding government officials accountable, is under unprecedented attack. read more >
Arkansas Senate OKs Exempting School Employee Info
Arkansas lawmakers have given final approval to legislation that exempts the home addresses and other personal contact information of nonelected public school employees from release under the state Freedom of Information Act. read more >
by Associated Press -
Joy Sharp May Stay at University of Arkansas After Advancement Debacle
After University of Arkansas officials became aware in June of overspending by the Fayetteville campus’ Advancement Division, the parties deemed responsible saw their jobs change. read more >
Our World In 2013 (Gwen Moritz Editor’s Note)
There is nothing about the Legislature's decision to amend the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act to conceal who is licensed to carry a concealed weapon that expands or otherwise protects the individual right to bear arms. No one new gets to legally own, carry or discharge firearms. The requirements for licensure aren’t changed at all by this decision to slice off a little piece of the public’s right to know. read more >
by Gwen Moritz -
Legislators Advance Bill to Keep Concealed Carry List Secret
An Arkansas House panel has advanced a proposal to make secret the list of 130,000 residents permitted to carry concealed weapons. read more >
by Associated Press -
Arkansas Supreme Court Reverses Ruling on FOI Law
The Arkansas Supreme Court has overturned a lower court's ruling that declared the state's Freedom of Information law unconstitutional, finding that the issue is one for the Legislature, not the courts. read more >
by Associated Press -