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03/11/07
Sunshine Week 2007
Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition is formed
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) -- A new group, the Pennsylvania Freedom
of Information Coalition, has been formed to protect the right
of Pennsylvania citizens to obtain public information from
local governments and the state.
The founders are journalists, librarians, attorneys, educators
and community group leaders.
"Our coalition is intended to be just that -- a coalition
of Pennsylvania citizens from all walks of life, who share
the belief that the best government is an open one,"
said Gayle Sproul, an attorney chosen as the group's first
president.
"This is a coalition that aims to serve the average citizen
of our commonwealth and give each of us open access to our
government at all levels," said Sproul, from the Philadelphia
firm Levine Sullivan Koch & Schulz.
The coalition said it has a lot of work: Pennsylvania has
consistently been ranked one of the worst states in the nation
for access to government records and open meetings.
Many records that are public in other states are kept secret
in Pennsylvania, including, for instance, the reasons for
the firing of public school employees and the records of cell-phone
calls made on taxpayer-paid phones.
The group has been granted nonprofit tax status. It received
a $10,000 startup award from the National Freedom of Information
Coalition through a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight
Foundation. It also was awarded a $5,000 donation from the
funds of the former Pennsylvania First Amendment Coalition,
a group formed by journalists in 1977 to fight for freedom
of the press.
The coalition will use the grants to build a Web site and
publish educational materials for the public. A key mission
will be to educate citizens, groups and government officials
about the importance of open government and how they can use
their rights to get public records. The group also will help
groups or citizens who run into difficulty obtaining public
records.
The Pennsylvania Freedom of Information Coalition is accepting
memberships, with annual dues ranging from $25 for individuals
to $1,000 for large businesses. Members will receive a step-by-step
"Citizen's Guide to Access," expert legal advice
on questions of public access, and updates on open-records
legislation and legal efforts.
In open-government cases of statewide importance, the coalition
plans to help citizens obtain legal representation.
The group will also monitor proposed state and federal laws,
regulations and court decisions and provide information to
state officials to encourage discussion of open government
improvements in Pennsylvania.
"To the extent allowed by our nonprofit status, we support
reforms affecting public records," Sproul said. "There
should be no shadowy corners in government. We want to let
the light in."
Other members of the coalition board are: Vice President Robert
Richards of Penn State University's Pennsylvania Center for
the First Amendment; Secretary Donald Gilliland, managing
editor of the Potter Leader-Enterprise in Coudersport; treasurer
Kim de Bourbon, a freelance journalist; Cathi Alloway, public
services director of the Dauphin County Library; Robert Clothier,
an attorney with Fox Rothschild in Philadelphia; Jim DePury,
news director for WPMT-TV in central Pennsylvania; Sally Hale,
chief of the Pennsylvania bureau of The Associated Press;
Brian Lockman, president and CEO of Pennsylvania Cable Network;
Jim Parsons, reporter for WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh, and Ernest
Schreiber, editor of the Lancaster New Era.
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