By Catherine MacDonald and Sarah Sonies
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Phil and Ellen Winter of Waynesboro, Va., were concerned when they noticed the city failed to deposit their property tax check on time. This prompted the retired mathematicians to gather more than 100 pages of government documents, which showed the city treasurer had allegedly mishandled about $400,000 in city and state taxpayer money.
Not only did they reveal information pertinent to their own dollars, the Winters made quite a stir: The couple shared their information with local newspapers, ultimately directly affecting the outcome of the next election, when a challenger defeated the incumbent city treasurer.
It’s no longer a rare occurrence for individual citizens to make a splash as the Winters did. The couple used the Freedom of Information Act, a law that makes it possible for the public to obtain certain types of documents and access to meetings, to investigate their local government.
Though FOIA is often considered used predominantly by journalists, it is an important tool for citizens.
“The Freedom of Information act is a citizens’ law,” said Ginger Stanley, the executive director of the Virginia Press Association. “I think that there is a misunderstanding that this law is primarily for the press, but that is not the case at all.
“It is very important that citizens of Virginia take part in their local government action and understand that access to government information is the way that you can be an effective citizen and voter in the commonwealth,” Stanley said.
Stanley said the Virginia FOIA laws are especially accessible to citizens.
“Our law is very friendly for citizens because they don’t have to request it in writing, they don’t have to pay up front and, in most instances, if it is simple request, the government entity doesn’t even charge,” Stanley said.
“So in many instances, it is a free service that is expected of our government. That’s one thing that state employees should expect … Part of their job is to accommodate the citizens of Virginia.”
Stanley said the VPA primarily receives FOIA-related queries from reporters and newspaper editors, but several times a month the organization gets calls from citizens who are having difficulty obtaining records and request help. She said she usually suggests they get in touch with the Virginia Coalition for Open Government.
“(VCOG has) the most flexibility in helping citizens,” Stanley said. VCOG is a nonprofit alliance formed to promote expanded access to government records, meetings and other proceedings at the state and local level.
Megan Rhyne, executive director of the Williamsburg-based VCOG, said she sees a wide range of resistance when citizens request the organization’s help with FOIA requests.
“When FOIA requests are being filed, we see lots of instances where … it is easy and painless and there are no problems at all,” Rhyne said. “And then we see plenty of situations where there is a lot of resistance to turning over those records.”
Dave Mills, the director of the Virginia Democratic Party, said his group received help from VCOG when the party filed a FOIA request in response to Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s lawsuit regarding the passage of health care reform.
Mills said an organization like the Virginia Democratic Party might have an easier time requesting information under FOIA than a citizen working alone.
“Any bigger organization has an advantage because the opposition is more apt to make sure things go well,” Mills said. “If you snub a big organization, you run the risk of snubbing a bigger population, and it is more likely to receive media coverage because there will be more citizens affected.”
However, Mills said he has never talked to a private citizen who has sent a FOIA request to the attorney general’s office and “been upset with the response.”
Map and List of FOIA Help Offices in Virginia
Note: The map is available online by clicking here.
Virginia Coalition for Open Government
P.O. Box 2576
Williamsburg, VA 23187-2576
540-353-8264
VCOG is a nonprofit alliance formed to promote expanded access to government records, meetings and other proceedings at the state and local level. The group’s efforts are focused solely on local and state information access, and its primary work is educational.
Virginia Press Association
11529 Nuckols Road
Glen Allen, VA 23059-5508
804-521-7570
The Virginia Press Association represents newspaper interests in the General Assembly through lobbying efforts and facilitates print and online advertising campaigns for its members. VPA champions the common interests of Virginia newspapers and the ideals of a free press in a democratic society.
American Civil Liberties Union (Virginia)
ACLU of Virginia
530 E. Main St., Suite 310
Richmond, VA 23219
804- 644-8022
The ACLU calls itself the nation’s guardian of liberty, working daily in courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and laws of the United States guarantee everyone in this country.
Reporters Committee For Freedom of the Press
1101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1100
Arlington, VA 22209
Legal Defense Hotline: 1-800-336-4243
For non-emergency calls: 703-807-2100
A nonprofit organization dedicated to providing free legal assistance to journalists since 1970.
The Center for Responsive Politics
1101 14th St., N.W., Suite 1030
Washington, D.C. 20005-5635
202-857-0044
The Center for Responsive Politics is the nation’s premier research group tracking money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy. Nonpartisan, independent and nonprofit, the organization aims to create a more educated voter, an involved citizenry and a more transparent and responsive government.
Student Press Law Center
1101 Wilson Blvd., Suite 1100
Arlington, VA 22209
The Student Press Law Center is an advocate for student free-press rights and provides information, advice and legal assistance at no charge to students and the educators who work with them.
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