Brechner News

Citizen Documenters’ summaries of public meetings are more readable and useful to the public than agency meeting minutes, according to a study by Nina Kelly, a doctoral candidate at Wayne State University, published in the Journal of Civic Information. 

The Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications will host the winners of the 2025 Brechner Freedom of Information Award, St. Louis Public Radio, APM Reports and The Marshall Project, for a day of dialogue with students, faculty and the community on their collaborative investigative project, Unsolved.

Iowa House representatives are moving forward with legislation that aims to increase training for local officials on open meetings and public record laws, and to raise penalties for open meeting violations 

The Utah Legislature has received the Society of Professional Journalists’ Black Hole Award, a dubious honor that highlights significant violations of the public's right to know. The award was presented for two new laws, Senate Bill 277 and House Bill 69, passed in the 2025 General Session that alter how public records requests are handled in the state.  

The first Sunshine Fest March 19-20 enabled about 160 people from throughout the country – and also from Canada, Brazil and Ghana – to discuss solutions to the most pressing problems in government transparency. 

Started as Sunshine Sunday back in 2002, Cuillier notes that despite the state’s legacy as a shining example of open government, Florida's commitment to open records and public meetings is increasingly under threat.  

Federal agencies should improve the FOIA process by utilizing data tools more effectively to identify records to proactively post, according to a white paper issued Feb. 24 by the Data Working Group of the Chief FOIA Officers’ Council. 

A new bill could bring public access back to the selection process for Florida’s public university and college presidents. 

Whistle blowers are a key component for the public to learn about what the government is up to, and a recent study in Public Administration found the best way to encourage government employees to do the right thing is to focus on the waste of tax dollars for the community when failing to report. 

A bill that could impose new fees and limitations on public records requests has advanced through its first committee in the New Mexico House.  

Cities that post on Facebook basic news, without political messaging, demonstrate more online engagement with their citizens, according to a study in Government Information Quarterly. 

A Utah Senate committee narrowly approved a bill that would dismantle the citizen-led committee responsible for resolving disputes over access to government records. The proposal would replace the State Records Committee with an administrative law judge appointed by the governor.