Maybe the Lowndes County Commission should have read these quotes
before it approved that
unbudgeted no-bid not-discussed-in-the-retreat
second water treatment system purchase.
Update 17 October 2014: Fix date of editorial. -jsq
VDT editorial 12 April August 2014,
Why open government matters,
“The same prudence, which, in private life, would forbid our paying our money for unexplained projects, forbids it in the disposition of public moneys.” — Thomas Jefferson.
Continue reading
Beth Fouhy writes for AP that
Openness in state gov’t? AP survey shows obstacles
More openness in government. Lawmakers across the country, including the Republicans who took control in many states this year, say they want it. But a survey of all 50 states by The Associated Press has found that efforts to boost openness often are being thwarted by old patterns of secrecy.The story lists some good progress in some states, including Alabama. Then it goes into some backsliding: Continue readingThe survey did find signs of progress in a number of states, especially in technological efforts to make much more information available online. But there also are restrictions being put in place for recent electronic trends, such as limits on access to officials’ text messages.