A representative government is dependent on an informed electorate
Last month, the Wisconsin town of Hazelhurst postponed discussion of a proposed ordinance due to a typo. The meeting agenda had incorrectly listed “wake board” instead of the intended “wake boat.” Said town chairman Ted Cushing, “I’m not going to violate the Open Meetings Law.” It was the right call, one that affirms my belief […]
Continue ReadingProbably the most commonly used — and, in my opinion, abused — exemption in our state’s Open Meetings Law is the one that lets governmental bodies meet behind closed doors “whenever competitive or bargaining reasons require a closed session.” The exemption, 19.85(1)(e) in Wisconsin state statutes, is used by all manner of public bodies, from […]
Continue ReadingIn any community, the role of the medical examiner is vital. Medical examiners — or coroners, in the nearly half of Wisconsin’s 72 counties that have them as an alternative — determine the cause and manner of death, support the criminal justice system and track data to identify trends that can impact public health and […]
Continue ReadingWisconsin’s municipal courts can have a significant and devastating impact on the lives of people who can’t afford to pay a citation due to poverty. Without critical legal protections, unpaid municipal citations can lead to warrants, arrests and incarceration. There is no right to counsel in Wisconsin’s municipal courts, meaning people unable to afford an […]
Continue ReadingFor the 19th consecutive year, the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council is bestowing its annual Openness in Government Awards, or Opees, meant to recognize outstanding efforts to protect the state’s tradition of open government, as well as highlight impediments. The awards are being announced in advance of national Sunshine Week (sunshineweek.org), March 16-22 and will […]
Continue ReadingThere’s good news and bad news in a recent Wisconsin Court of Appeals decision upholding an open records judgment related to the ridiculous and ham-handed investigation into alleged 2020 election fraud headed by former Supreme Court justice Michael Gableman. On the good news side, the appellate court upheld a lower court ruling that the state […]
Continue ReadingDear Council members and supporters: The Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that works to protect access to public meetings and records, is now accepting nominations for its annual Openness in Government Awards, or Opees. Awards are given in six categories: Popee (public openness award): Recognizes extraordinary service to the cause of […]
Continue ReadingShereen Siewert, publisher of the Wausau Pilot and Review, has been breathing easier these days. In September, a Wisconsin appeals court upheld a lower court’s dismissal of state Sen. Cory Tomczyk’s defamation lawsuit against Siewert, the nonprofit newsroom she founded in 2017, and one of its reporters. The ruling, which Tomczyk did not appeal, ended […]
Continue ReadingThe other day, in my role as an advocate for open government, I heard from a Wisconsin resident who has waited more than five months for records he requested from a local law enforcement agency. He has gently prodded the agency several times, asking, “How much more time is my request going to take?” More […]
Continue ReadingIn 2022, the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council created a designated fund to help cover legal costs associated with fighting to pry records into the public domain. Called simply the WFOIC Legal Fund, it has never had more than $4,000 in its coffers. But the Council, of which I am a member, has put what […]
Continue ReadingOn Tuesday, Sept. 17, the Sauk County Board voted to spend $40,500 to buy a sheriff’s department vehicle to replace one totaled in a July incident. The resolution printed on the agenda included details of the incident, the car dealer and a fiscal note explaining that the money would come from insurance accounts. This display […]
Continue ReadingAs identified by the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, September 2024 1. Long waits. The Open Records Law states that requested records must be provided “as soon as practicable and without delay.” It adds that providing access to information “is declared to be … an integral part of the routine duties of [public] officers and […]
Continue ReadingLast March, the Wisconsin Examiner asked the Black River Falls Police Department to search for emails regarding the death of a missing Indigenous man. The department said it would process the request but the news outlet would have to pay $4,400. That’s the amount the city’s IT vendor, Tech Pros, quoted to perform the search. […]
Continue ReadingYou ask for a record from your local government, you get it. You want to attend a meeting of a public body, you can walk right in. Much of the time, it’s that simple. Wisconsin’s open records law entitles citizens to most records regarding the affairs of government, and its open meetings law creates a […]
Continue ReadingOpen Meetings Law Listed below is the complete text of the Wisconsin Open Meetings Law, Wis. Stat. §§ 19.81-19.98, as of July 2024. Click here for a more detailed and annotated version of the statutes. Annotations are useful references to case law and opinions of the Attorney General that can help explain a passage. […]
Continue ReadingOpen Records Law Listed below is the complete text of the Wisconsin Open Records Law, Wis. Stat. §§ 19.31-19.39, as of July 2024. Click here for a more detailed and annotated version of the statutes. Annotations are useful references to case law and opinions of the Attorney General that can help explain a passage. […]
Continue ReadingThe bill moved with lightning speed. It was introduced last December, passed the state Senate in January and the Assembly in February, and was signed into law by Gov. Tony Evers in March. 2023 Wisconsin Act 253 allows police and corrections officials to charge some requesters of video and audio recordings for the cost of […]
Continue ReadingImagine I sue a school district for refusing to provide copies of records. Do I have to prove I’m entitled to them, or does the district have to prove it can withhold them? That’s a question the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, along with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, […]
Continue ReadingThe Wisconsin Supreme Court will soon hear a case involving records related to the voting rights of mentally incompetent people. No matter which side wins, the public has in some ways already lost. That’s because while the case pits the public’s right to scrutinize voter eligibility against the rights of voters to protect their own […]
Continue ReadingA horrific scene played out in February in an apartment complex in Middleton, a Madison suburb. A woman and her two young children had died. The tight-knit community mourned for this family as its members asked: How could this happen? Several days after the shootings, Middleton police released a statement saying the mother had killed […]
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