Proposed FOI consolidation raises a red flag

While newly elected Gov. Dannel Malloy has shown no desire to be secretive in his work running the state’s business, a troublesome component of his economic plan is raising red flags in local newsrooms, as it proposes merging the state’s Freedom of Information Commission (FOIC) with four other agencies to form a new Office of Government Accountability (OGA).Connecticut citizens are right to question this consolidation of services, which appears in Senate Bill 1009, “An Act Creating the Office of Governmental Accountability,” as it would make it more difficult to maintain a transparent government in Connecticut.Malloy’s plan combines the FOIC with the Offices of State Ethics, Contracting Standards, Judicial Review and State Elections Enforcement to create the new agency, in which one commissioner would be in charge of five departments. A deputy commissioner would be in charge of three operational branches — enforcement, public affairs and general business operations.The exact impact on FOIC in this scenario is not fully explained, but it is clear that the consolidation will result in staff reductions. By reducing FOIC staff and placing additional burdens on them by adding work from the other agencies, the governor’s plan reduces the effectiveness of the FOIC and makes it more difficult for citizens to obtain information in a timely fashion. As many as nine specialized FOI attorneys would be lost in the shuffle, while the remaining staff would take on an increased workload, sharing duties across the OGA.Clearly, the intent of the consolidation is to save money by eliminating duplication of jobs and services. It is estimated that the reduction in staff could save about $1 million, but representatives from the FOIC and other organizations have testified the savings would be negligible. Relocation costs, including new phone and computer systems for the newly consolidated department, would eat up most of the savings, according to FOIC Executive Director Colleen Murphy.Murphy added that consolidation will impede the effectiveness of the commission by stripping it of its independence. “Under the proposal, the head of the new agency would be a gubernatorial appointee, serving at the pleasure of the governor,” she wrote. “It is feared that this proposed change would critically impair the ability of the agency, as a whole and its subordinate divisions, to do their jobs impartially, objectively and in the public interest.”In written testimony to the state Legislature, the Connecticut League of Women voters also opposed the consolidation, pointing out that the FOIC and other citizen commissions currently select their own executive directors, but under the governor’s proposal, the director of OGA would be appointed by the governor. The office would immediately lose the crucial independence it needs to do its job properly, in an age in which government officials and their corporate counterparts need to be watched more closely than ever.Connecticut’s Freedom of Information Commission must maintain its independent budget and governance to work properly, and state legislators know it. Citizens should remind them that they know it, too.

Latest News

Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less