WASHINGTON — A national watchdog group has established a Web site designed to push state and local governments to be more open and to share more information with the public. Sunshine Review president Michael Barnhart said the Web site, called sunshinestandard.org, will help make it easier for the public to track information that is rightfully theirs. The record of state and local governments on transparency issues has generally been abysmal, Barnhart said. Bell, Calif., has been the classic example, he said. The Los Angeles Times found out that as they were laying off most of the police and fire departments and slashing services, Bell officials and council members were giving themselves six-figure salaries. Most are in jail and now the focus of several investigations. Now, most of the burden of getting public information is placed on the shoulders of the press and public.
Tuesday, Nov. 16, 9 a.m.
