While ClearGov’s primary purpose is to assist in the budget process, the Clear Plan module is focused on the categorization and publication of strategic plans for municipalities and their governmental departments. As conversations around constructing a new, comprehensive, and operational strategic plan for Otsego County began in recent years, the county board and County Administrator Steve Wilson decided Clear Plan was the most effective and efficient service to go with.…
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government transparency
New York’s transparency crisis isn’t caused by ordinary people filing requests for information. It’s caused by government agencies that ignore, delay or deny FOIL requests without consequence. Penalizing requestors targets the wrong side of the equation.…
A proposal submitted by EcoYotta Inc. seeks to rezone 153 acres of land, currently zoned for residential-agricultural use, into an industrial development district to make way for a data center. But the application, as it stands, is glaringly incomplete.…
The recent U.S. Department of Justice’s 2024 FOIA Report paints a troubling picture: A record 1.5 million requests were filed—a 25 percent spike. Agencies processed more requests than ever, but backlogs still jumped 33 percent, topping 267,000—the worst in a decade.…
Observers help ensure that the issues facing our community are being handled in the open—“in the sunshine”—and that there is transparency, accountability, and citizen engagement that supports good government.…
For the past two years, the Senate and Assembly have marked Sunshine Week by passing different FOIL reform bills, yet none have become law. This year, transparency advocates urge both houses to unite behind a package of four key bills designed to modernize FOIL and enhance government accountability:…
Many people wrote letters and conversed with village trustees to share their concern. Many people showed up to the March 25 village meeting. Once the conversation was raised openly, it became quite clear that most people in the village were as surprised as I was that this public works project was happening and most were not in favor of it for a variety of reasons.…
When Iron String Press received the first e-mail from a concerned citizen who said they knew nothing about the Village of Cooperstown’s plans to install a cantilevered viewing platform at the terminus of Pioneer Street, we were surprised. It was not news to us, because we had covered the village’s NY Forward $4.5 million grant process from beginning to end, and the viewing platform was one of a number of projects being considered for funding.…
Having lived at 20 Pioneer Street for over 24 years, we have never encountered a proposal that jeopardizes our way of life environmentally, economically, and in terms of community health—more than this one.…
