New England First Amendment Coalition

NEFAC President Greg Sullivan recently spoke to Rhianwen Watkins at the Granite State News Collaborative about New Hampshire's public records ombudsman position: “It’s pretty clear to me that this is not a one-man job,” Sullivan said, noting that Thomas Kehr is the only employee in the ombudsman’s office and has no staff. “To me, that is absurd. That’s on the Legislature that created the position but hasn’t funded it and staffed it in order to meet the goal of efficiency.” https://lnkd.in/ewf6wcqm

TODAY! Join us and attorney Harrison Stark at ACLU of Vermont to learn about open meetings and remote access. Register here: https://lnkd.in/e6eNuiCG #opengov

Applications for Negri First Amendment Institute Now Available; Exclusive Investigative Reporting Fellowships for New England Reporters, Editors and Producers: https://lnkd.in/erAX5VV9 See the Institute in action and learn why you should apply: https://lnkd.in/evTxYDs9

NEFAC Executive Director Justin Silverman recently spoke to Dan Atkinson at Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism about the lack of transparency within the MBTA: Even if the information is partially exempt under the public records law, the T’s assertion — that it doesn’t have to provide redacted information because in its view, that information wouldn’t make sense — is “ridiculous,” Silverman said. “I don’t like any agency to be in the position of deciding that for themselves,” he added. “Even if it does apply, they should still give all of the reports. All of the factual findings that aren’t covered should be disclosed." https://lnkd.in/e5Uj7uWY

NEFAC President Greg Sullivan to WMTW's Norah Hogan: "In order for someone to have a claim for wrongful invasion of privacy, there first has to be a reasonable expectation of privacy. So pretty much anything that occurs in public is fair game." https://lnkd.in/eHBxn8ar

“This issue of quasi-judicial bodies is a gray area,” said Justin Silverman, executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition. “There has been a lot of litigation in other New England states about what constitutes quasi-judicial bodies, advisory bodies, and other public bodies that don’t fit squarely within each state’s open meetings act. It’s very fact specific.” But since the Labor Relations Board allows the public to attend hearings, Silverman said he sees no reason why videotaping should be prohibited. “If the public can view everything going on within the room, then recording should be allowed,” he said. “Because of logistical limitations, not everyone can attend.” https://lnkd.in/erAnd7Jv

We recently celebrated our 14th annual New England First Amendment Awards in Boston. Honorees included the late Sarah-Ann Shaw, Maine Trust for Local News, Daniel Dunn and New Hampshire Public Radio. Learn more about the program and view additional photos at: https://lnkd.in/eR5d-Qrk Many thanks to all the event's sponsors, including Boston University College of Communication, Boston Globe Media, Hearst Connecticut Media Group, Emerson College School of Communication, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP, Northeastern University, Roger Williams University, University of Connecticut, University of Rhode Island, The Day, WCVB Channel 5, Prince Lobel Tye LLP and Goulston & Storrs.

Congratulations to our client, Maine Trust for Local News, on their recognition for the annual Michael Freedom of Information Award. We are proud of the journalists, and our own Sigmund Schutz for their hard work in their pursuit of transparency and relaying information to the public.

REGISTER NOW 👉 👉🏽 👉🏿 Open Meetings and Remote Access in Rhode Island with John Marion of Common Cause Rhode Island https://lnkd.in/ev_vD9Hx A special thanks to Rhode Island Foundation for its support of this lesson!

NEFAC Impact Report | Spring 2024 | Support the #FirstAmendment and #OpenGov https://conta.cc/45XINy1 #thankyou