Talk of a possible teachers’ strike last month was tense and emotional for a lot of us. When the school board and the teachers’ union came together at nearly the last minute, I felt relieved and psychologically moved past it right away. But that was wrong. What I should have done, and will do now,…
Tag: transparency
DeKalb’s Website Transparency Mystery Solved
Just in time for Sunshine Week, I’ve re-scored the City of DeKalb’s website transparency score from scratch. Does it come anywhere near the Illinois Policy Institute’s score of 88.1 points? No. But at least I have found out why. Check out the scoring rubric, here. This is the one I used both in December 2010…
About the City of DeKalb’s Website Transparency Award
*As promised, I’ve continued pursuing the mystery of last month’s awarding of the Illinois Policy Institute’s website transparency award. Here’s an update.* I’ve been in communication with Brian Costin, director of the Local Transparency Project at the Illinois Policy Institute, about the award for website transparency he gave last month to the City of DeKalb.…
There is no “r” in Fazekas
I want to offer a few words on my write-in candidacy for DeKalb City Clerk so it doesn’t get weird between us. I filed last Thursday, aware by that point of one other person who might be running and found out later that we are four. A public statement of candidacy and a Facebook page…
A Visit to DeKalb County’s New Website
DeKalb County put its new website online this week. The county says the overhaul was not made in response to the Illinois Policy Institute’s recent grade of D-, but has been in the works for about a year. DeKalb County has put lots online for quite some time, but finding it or even getting a…
Winnebago Forest Preserve District Eliminates Public Safety Job
***Update 1:30 p.m.: Their lips say no, but the timing feels like there’s some piling on.*** **Update 9:45 a.m.: Here’s the latest put up by RRStar. I do NOT agree that WCFPD has a credibility problem (stated at the end of the article). Instead, I’d argue that any credibility problem is Randy Olson’s alone at…
Website Transparency Standouts
The Illinois Policy Institute recently re-tested government website transparency in DuPage County’s York Township and released results last week. Dubbed “The Local Transparency Project,” grades are based on the availability to the public of vital community information such as public meeting schedules, government employee salaries and tax rates. Since the project was launched by the…
Call the Wa-a-a-mbulance for Belvidere Township
WATB alert! BELVIDERE — Belvidere Township’s legal fees have skyrocketed 383 percent from five years ago. The township has been scrutinized for months with residents filing lengthy Freedom of Information Act requests and writing memos that require legal responses. People have questioned the township’s budget, public comment process and whether the government body should even…
Lyons Township and the Very Large Accrued Leave Payout
Apparently this became a story when an employee of the Better Government Association looked up a salary at Open the Books, an online database of Illinois public employee and government financial information. Open the Books is a project of For the Good of Illinois, a good-government organization founded by former gubernatorial candidate Adam Andrzejewski. Vive…
The FY2011 Central Area TIF Report
…can be found here (It’s a 64-page PDF so give it a minute to load). As an incorrigible repeat offender I could not stop myself from submitting a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to obtain the following information: 1. The breakdown of the transfers so we can tell how much is going to the…