Why Proposed Legislation in WA State would be Bad for the Public’s Right to Know
Props to the Association for Washington Cities for inviting another point of view to their February 2013 legislative conference in Olympia. I represented the Washington Coalition for Open Government in...
View ArticleTime Travel to 2011: Why Tillicum Lost in the Dispute with Camp Murray
The Lowenberg Gate to Camp Murray. It got built. In 2011, Lakewood endured one of the most bitter neighborhood debates in recent memory. Residents of the Tillicum area were deeply concerned about...
View ArticleLakewood city manager candidates look promising
Deputy County Executive Kevin Phelps speaks to people gathered at a reception for city manager candidates held Monday at McGavick Center, Clover Park Technical College 6 p.m. update … well looks like...
View ArticleSpending the night with several thousand dead people and loving it
This sure seems like it’s been a good year for death and a bad year for the rest of us. A lot of private and famous people seem to have passed on recently. Locally, the names of George Weyerhaeuser Jr...
View ArticleWashington Legislature Wisely Adds Reforms to the Lodging Tax Laws
Click on the photo of the governor’s bill-signing, above, to learn more about the lodging tax reform legislation from the Washington Lodging Association. Considering how often we all like to pick on...
View ArticleIt Shouldn’t be so Hard to Attribute Information to the Author in Twitter
With a book deadline now a month away, I’ve gotten pretty quiet on this blog. But a morning reading social media has me pondering, for the umpteenth time this year, what the heck ever happened to...
View ArticleMy column: Washington Coalition for Open Government Hosts Forum in Colfax
Occasionally I’ve written guest columns on behalf of the Washington Coalition for Open Government to promote upcoming events. I was asked to do so for an event in Colfax. It’s traditional to open these...
View ArticleCouncillor Giorgio Mammoliti sparks firestorm on social media with comments...
Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti sparks firestorm on social media with comments … Source: www.cp24.com So we could just say here "Don’t call a neighborhood in your city a “pedophile district"" but elected...
View ArticleReading from the Declaration of Independence: “Public Records” also concerned...
It turns out the writers of the Declaration of Independence were as concerned about access to public records as advocates of open government are today. Our ability to get public records from any level...
View ArticleGovernments Struggling to Get Social Media Right
Social media is the ultimate government transparency, which is why public officials need to not only get used to it but also get good at it. Here’s how. (Is local government doing a good job with...
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