The Michigan Coalition for Open Government has released a Sunshine Agenda in hopes of making Freedom of Information Act requests of the governor and legislature possible. | Pexels/Lukas
The Michigan Coalition for Open Government has released a Sunshine Agenda in hopes of making Freedom of Information Act requests of the governor and legislature possible. | Pexels/Lukas
The Michigan Coalition for Open Government (MiCOG) has released a "Sunshine Agenda" as a first step to ensuring Michigan residents have access to government meetings and records.
Michigan is the only state whose Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) statue exempts the governor's office or the executive branch. The statute also exempts the state legislature.
MiCOG is a statewide nonprofit that includes as its members the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Michigan and the Detroit and Mid-Michigan chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists along with other organizations. It is committed to protecting citizens' rights to know what is happening in their government.
“Due to the crisis of COVID-19 and its disproportionate harms on Black and Brown communities, this year in particular demonstrates the urgency for government officials to make access and information more available to the people, not less,” Shelli Weisberg, MiCOG board member and political director of the ACLU of Michigan, said in a release issued on the MiCOG website. “This is an opportunity to invite the public to participate in the democratic process by continuing to open up avenues to do so.”
The 10-point Sunshine Agenda calls for tougher penalties on government officials who violate open meetings or open records laws.
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