Bill would make it harder to see if state officials have conflicts of interest

[Robbie88]

Not that this kind of thing should come as a surprise to anyone anymore...

From the http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_78d2132e-8e35-11e0-828c-001cc4c002e0.html">Wisconsin State Journal:

Residents who want to know if top state officials have conflicts of interest could only view disclosure forms by visiting the Government Accountability Board office in Downtown Madison, under a measure passed by the Legislature's Joint Finance Committee.

Open-government groups cried foul, saying the measure, tucked into the massive state budget, would severely restrict public access to the statements of economic interests filed by about 2,400 state officials each year.

Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council, issued an alert to his members Friday, calling the move "deeply troubling."

"While there's no doubt some public officials would prefer that this information be more difficult to obtain, there is no sound public policy justification for doing so," Lueders says. "This is information that the public has a right to access, to protect the integrity of our public institutions."

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_78d2132e-8e35-11e0-828c-001cc4c002e0.html

[sybylla]

1. Then we should all request that info now

:evilgrin:

Not that most of us cared, but the fact that they think they have something to hide tells me we all should be looking into this immediately.

[Robbie88]

2. Haha sounds like a good idea.

I love their "reasoning"...that people are going through the hassle of requesting this information just for shits and giggles and to "snoop" around in people's lives. Give me a break. :eyes:

[mojowork_n]

3. Here's one place to start.

Page 5B of today's J-S has this paragraph squarely buried in the middle of
the text:

{The amended Budge Bill includes a proposal, "requiring local governments
to use contractors, instead of their own road crews, for certain projects
that cost more than $100,000. Critics have said that could drive up costs
for cash-strapped cities and counties."}

The unholy alliance between the Road Builders and our Republican Oligarchs
at its best, a ukase (yka3) mandating privatization -- and more work and
more profits -- for the Oligarch's biggest backers.

Driving around Milwaukee's freeway system last week, I got a look at that
incredible tunnel that's replacing the left turn, north of the airport.

Who designed that one and how much is it going to cost?

[Robbie88]

4. Funny how all the crap about "local control" and "saving taxpayer money" seems to go out the window

whenever some big GOP donor is involved. Amazing that they believe that they can get away with this sort of blatant corruption...