Open Government « Coates' Canons

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LIHWAP Participation and Disclosure of Public Enterprise Billing Information

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Immediate Disclosure of Body-Worn Cameras Related to Death or Serious Bodily Injury

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Public Meetings After the Lifting of the State-Level State of Emergency

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Clarification of Rules for Remote Meetings Under State Level State of Emergency: No More Waiting 24 Hours After Public Hearings!

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Where (and Just What) is the “Personnel File”?

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New Rules for Meetings of Public Bodies During State-Level Declared Emergencies

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Electronic Meetings During the COVID-19 Emergency: Recommended Practices

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Social Services Confidentiality: A Few FAQs During the Pandemic

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Governor Cooper’s COVID-19 Statewide Stay at Home Order: What Effect Does It Have On County and City Emergency Restrictions?

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Can We Really Ban In-Person Attendance at Board Meetings During the Coronavirus Emergency?

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Remote Participation in Quasi-Judicial Evidentiary Hearings

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COVID-19: Procurement Questions for North Carolina’s Local Governments

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Meetings and Public Hearings Under the Coronavirus State of Emergency

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Is That All There Is? Strategies for Proving a Negative When a Person Alleges That Their Request for Records Has Not Been Fulfilled

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Retention Schedules for Local Governments: Five Things You Should Know

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Settlements Under the North Carolina Public Records Law

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The First Amendment Keeps the “Social” in Government Social Media

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What are “Full and Accurate” Minutes?

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How to Approve Minutes and General Accounts of Closed Sessions

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Formulating Plans for Responding to School Violence in Closed Session: Who Can Attend?

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Mediation of Public Records Disputes is Jurisdictional

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New Rules for Online Access to Databases and Other Records

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Open Meetings Book: New Edition Now Available

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Email as Public Record: Five Things You Should Know [Updated]

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Animal Services Records: Common Threads for Different Programs

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Board Majorities Attending External Events or Meetings: When is Notice Required?

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Answers to Questions About North Carolina’s Body-Worn Camera Law

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Confidentiality of Taxpayer Income Information

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The Latest on North Carolina Body-Worn Camera Legislation

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Legislative Proposal Regarding Body-Worn Cameras

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Requests For Public Records Under FOIA: How Should Local Governments Respond?

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State and Local Government Financial Data Transparency Law

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Public Comment Period Policies: What’s Legal?

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Obtaining Employee Addresses from State Employers

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The “Government Speech” Doctrine and Local Government Meetings: Can the Government Take Sides?

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Setting Salaries and Closed Sessions

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Two New Exceptions to the Public Records Law Protect Citizen Information

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Local Government Economic Development Powers “Clarified”

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New Public Records Exceptions for Security and Law Enforcement Officers (LEO) Information

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AOC Database is Not Subject to the Public Records Act

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Trial Court Review of Closed Session Minutes

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When Board Members Won’t Talk Back

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Using Private Email for Public Business: Is it Illegal in North Carolina?

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Law Enforcement Video Camera Records: An Ongoing National Debate About Transparency

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County Tax Websites and Public Records Law

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What’s a Public Body?

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Statutory Permission to Take Up Items Not on the Special Meeting Notice

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Voting Rules for Adopting Ordinances

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Mayor Learns a Harsh E-Discovery Lesson

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Custodians of Public Records

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Polling the Board

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How Public Are Law Enforcement Vehicle or Body Camera Videos? (Not Very, in North Carolina.)

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Privacy, Privatization, and Transparency: 2014 Public Records and Open Meetings Legislation

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Acquiring real property for redevelopment—can local governments keep it confidential?

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Who Has Access to Applicant Information?

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Recording Closed Sessions

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Is a Quorum Necessary for a Public Hearing?

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Anonymous Tips: Can They Really Be Anonymous? [Revised]

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Quick-Reference Guide for Closed Sessions

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Databases Under the Public Records Law

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Canceling Meetings and Hearings Because of Inclement Weather

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Approving Minutes of Meetings You Didn’t Attend

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Mandated Notices in Land Development Regulations

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The Who, What, and When of Appeals TO the Board of Adjustment

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Who May Attend a Closed Session?

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Do Mayors Have a Duty to Vote?

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Board Members at Candidate Forums: Does the Open Meetings Law Apply?

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Remote Participation in Meetings

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Can the Board Take Action in a Workshop Meeting?

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Are Mug Shots Public Records?

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Who Can Request Public Records?

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Charging for Copies of Public Records

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Text Messages as Public Records

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Can I See What’s in My Personnel File?

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Are Security Videos Public Records?

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Confidentiality of Applicants’ Names

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Ethics and Employee Email

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Closed Session Minutes and General Accounts Under the Public Records Law

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Outsourcing Local Government Communications: Implications of the Federal Stored Communications Act

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A Road Trip, a Parking Lot Conversation, and a Site Visit: Are These Illegal Meetings?

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Dealing With Massive Public Records Requests

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Query That! Public Records Requirements Regarding Database Queries

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Form, Format, and Medium: How Must Electronic Records Be Provided?

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Draft Records Under the Public Records Law

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Can I Be Heard? Who Gets to Speak at a Hearing on a Quasi-judicial Matter?

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Canceling and Rescheduling Meetings

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Open Meetings and the Public’s Right to Speak

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Texting While Meeting: Is it Illegal for Local Government Officials?

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Court Does Not Have Authority to Grant Public Access to Personnel Records

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Are Cell Phone Bills Public Records?

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Metadata, E-Discovery, and E-Public Records in North Carolina

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911 Calls and Protecting the Natural Voice – Mandatory or Optional?

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Public Records Law and the Tax Office

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Email Subscriber Lists: A New Exception to the Public Records Law

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Ask, Don’t Compel: Local Government Authority to Establish Rules For Public Records Requests

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When Do Government Transparency Laws Apply to Private Entities?

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The Whole Enchilada: NC Court of Appeals Rules on Access Requirements Under the Open Meetings Law

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Is Metadata a Public Record? An Analysis Under Federal FOIA

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Records About Employment Actions: Clarifying What Is and Isn’t Public

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Using Social Security Numbers for Local Tax Administration

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Limitations on the Collection and Use of Social Security Numbers by Local Government Utilities

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Dismissals for Poor Performance: Legal Implications Under the Personnel Privacy Statutes

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Is a Survey A Public Record? Another Application of the Framework for Analyzing Public Records Questions

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Release of Personnel Records: What Rights Does An Employee Have?

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Open Meetings and Confidential Taxpayer Information

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Attorney General Opinion on 2010 Personnel Privacy Changes

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Calculating Majorities

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Is Metadata a Public Record? Case Law Update

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The First Amendment and Government Employees

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Utility Bill Postcards

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Waiting for Interpretations of the New Personnel Privacy Provisions: What Options Do Local Governments Have?

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Access to Records or Lists of Information: What Does the Public Records Law Require?

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Individual Board Member Access to Email

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Public Records Mediation and Attorneys’ Fees Provisions

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Personnel Privacy Law Changes

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Are Local Government Employee Time Sheets Public Records? (Applying the Framework for Answering Questions About Public Records Requests)

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Is This a Public Record? A Framework For Answering Questions About Public Records Requests

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Voting and Taking Action in Closed Sessions

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Statutorily Required Public Comment Periods: What Are They and How Do They Work?

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Airing Dirty Laundry in Public: Does the Law Require It?

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Citizen Participation Information as Public Record

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Bidding Confidential

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Is Metadata a Public Record? Part 2

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Is Metadata a Public Record?: Part 1

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Answers to Questions About Committees

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What Happens in Closed Session, Stays in Closed Session…Or Does It?

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Disclosing Utility Customer Billing Information

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What needs to be in the notice of a zoning hearing?

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Client-Related Records and the Public Records Law

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Rescheduling a Recessed Meeting

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Public Hearings for Economic Development Incentives: An Unwritten Rule?

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When Are Public Hearings Required