FIRST AMENDMENT

OF U.S. CONSTITUTION

Congress shall make

no law respecting an establishment of religion,

or prohibiting the free

exercise thereof; or

abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;

or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,

and to petition the

Government for a

redress of grievances.

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2016 MAJOR SUPPORTERS

LEARN ABOUT OUR ANNUAL NEW ENGLAND FIRST AMENDMENT INSTITUTE

NEFAC'S ANNUAL
NEW ENGLAND FIRST AMENDMENT AWARDS

SUNSHINE WEEK 2016

FILE FREE FOI REQUEST

We welcome contributions

to the NEFAC Report from journalists, lawyers, academics

or other advocates of

government transparency. If

you have something to add

to the conversation, please let

us know. Your stories, experiences and commentaries have broad appeal and value.

Submissions can be emailed to: mail@nefirstamendment.org

"Without some information about

what railroads are actually doing, how

can the public judge whether regulations

are protective of

human health and

the environment?

Ultimately, this type

of thing undermines people's confidence

in government."

NEFAC's Sigmund Schutz, an attorney at PretiFlaherty in Portland, Maine, discussing the need for more transparency among railroad carriers of hazardous waste.

Source: Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting 2.10.16

"We have . . .

concerns that could infringe on

a person's First Amendment rights.

If you leave

it up to the

towns as

to who they'd like to live

there or open

their services up to then what you've created is

a

patchwork quilt."

NEFAC's Dan Barrett, an attorney at the ACLU of Connecticut, explaining the First Amendment concerns of barring sex offenders from public libraries.

Source: Connecticut Post 2.21.16

"The secretary of state's office has expanded the public records law's 'personal privacy' exemption

to a ridiculous extreme. The video

in question shows a public figure walking through the most public of spaces -

the parking lot of a municipal police station."

"The privacy

exemption is

intended to protect against the disclosure of intimate details of

a highly personal nature, where there

is an insufficient countervailing public interest. The supervisor seems to equate it

with embarrassment. That is a troubling interpretation of our already weak Public Records Law."

NEFAC's Robert Bertsche, an attorney at Prince Lobel Tye in Boston, addressing a decision that allows law enforcement to withhold video showing an encounter with Chandler Jones of the New England Patriots.

Sources: The Boston Globe 2.24.16, Commonwealth Magazine 2.23.16

"For every story you tackle, there are nine stories on the wait list. We could have 10 Spotlight teams. If a few young people decide to make journalism a career because of this film, that's good.

The pay is horrible, but it's just a hell of a lot of fun."

NEFAC's Walter V. Robinson discussing the movie "Spotlight," based on his investigative team's Pulitizer Prize-winning reporting for The Boston Globe, and the need for more watchdog journalism.

Source: Vineyard Gazette 2.11.16

"It is a true

monument to

democracy. If you're elected to a public school board, that's really only when the board meets or if you are on an assignment from the board, otherwise you aren't

a member. Consider

your congressman

or congresswoman, elected to represent you, but not representing you

when he or she is just walking around the congressional district."

NEFAC's Jim Smith discussing a local school board policy that allows officials to withhold information pertaining to their actions outside official meetings.

"Our Commonwealth's primary means to ensure accountability

is becoming more and more elusive. With

the Senate's help,

that can change. The momentum we have today has been building for 43 years. We need to make

the most of the opportunity. There's

no guarantee we'll

get another.

Justin Silverman,

NEFAC's executive director, encouraging the Mass. Senate earlier this month to pass strong public records reform legislation.

NEFAC REPORT | February 2016

New England First Amendment Awards 2016

NEFAC Honors Sen. Patrick Leahy With

Stephen Hamblett First Amendment Award

Annual Freedom of Information Award to Be Named After

Michael Donoghue, Retired Burlington Free Press Reporter

As part of its annual luncheon, NEFAC honored U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy with its Stephen Hamblett First Amendment Award. Jenifer McKim of the New England Center for Investigative Reporting received the coalition's Freedom of Information Award. Michael A. Champa received the Antonia Orfield Citizenship Award. The coalition also announced during the luncheon that its annual Freedom of Information Award will be named after long-time NEFAC board member, Michael Donoghue, who recently retired from the Burlington Free Press after more than 40 years in its newsroom. [More]

About NEFAA2016

- Luncheon Program

- Speaker Bios

- Video of Speakers

- Text of Remarks

- Photos of Attendees

- Press Coverage

- Twitter #NEFAA2016

Additional Coverage of NEFAA2016

NEFAC News

NEFAC, Journalism Groups Continue to Push Federal Agencies for Better Policies

An alliance of more than 50 journalism and open government advocacy organizations, including the New England First Amendment Coalition, continues to push for more transparency within the federal government.
Several journalists and attorneys representing the alliance met with White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest late last year to voice concerns about policies within federal agencies that impede access to information such as blocking reporters' requests for interviews and excessive delays in answering interview requests. [More]

Blog

In Battle for Information About Maine Railroads and Hazardous Materials, Commercial Interests Winning

In Maine, the Legislature's Judiciary Committee reviews any proposed exemption to the state's Freedom of Access Act. You'd like to think that after 459 exemptions in the law's 40-year history, the committee would - at the very least - have the process down cold. Sadly, you'd be wrong. [More]

Now is Time to Reform Public Records Law; Senate Needs to Make Most of Opportunity

The Massachusetts Senate released a bill earlier this month that could help fix our broken public records law. While the legislation (S.2120) is much stronger than the lackluster proposal by the House last year, the Senate needs to now decide the fate of the many proposed amendments that could drastically affect the future of open government in the Commonwealth. [More] [Additional Coverage]

Conn. FOI Ruling Should Challenge

School Board That 'Does Not Exist'

Go ahead, read it again. It is a true monument to democracy. If you're elected to a public school board, that's really only when the board meets or if you are on an assignment from the board, otherwise you aren't a member. Consider your congressman or congresswoman, elected to represent you, but not representing you when he or she is just walking around the congressional district. The first thing our FOI commission must do is strike down that absurd section of Norwalk's school board bylaws. [More]