The recent outpouring of revulsion over Maine's state of transparency including criticism from governor LePage's own and our call for open government, have led to some positive change. But with every step forward, the state seems to take two backwards and any attempt at opening up its government has been received with counter productive actions, most of which created by its governor. Now, there is a possibility that a new proposed legislation, coupled with citizen demand for accountability will turn a fresh page for LaPage's state.

• A new bill to improve Maine transparency has been introduced. Sponsored by Senator John Patrick, the LD1260 will subject the governor elect's transition team to Freedom of Access laws. It will also impose a one year waiting ban on lobbying activities for former public officials and add economic provisions that indicate a possible conflict of interest for a lobbyist. Gerald Weinand analyzes the issue of transition teams which are not considered part of any government body and are therefore not subject to FOAA requests. See who is classified as a former lobbyist and a former legislator on Dirigo Blue.

• Maine Governor Paul LePage, who likened  the Freedom of Access Law to internal terrorism, has replaced the citizen Board of Environmental Protection with administrative law judges in order to limit citizens access to state decision-makers. For Sharon Treat, a state legislator, this decision could not have come at a worse time. Treat writes that part of this new provision revives “concept drafts” which are given to the state legislature to summarize a new bill without providing an opportunity for the public to contribute their input. See how Treat is trying to change this trend on From the North.

• Chicago’s Inspector General, Joe Ferguson, has introduced a new initiative to make the city more transparent. “Open Chicago” will be hosted on the recently redesigned Office of Inspector General’s website and will provide a better understanding of city government for the public while increasing effectiveness in the city’s operations. As a way of showing initial compliance to the IGO’s office, Open Chicago has already posted its collective bargaining agreements and Andy Shaw shares that it will periodically update its website with new datasets. Read more on the Shaw Blog

• One year after the fatal West Virginia mine accident that killed 29 miners, Jon Hale examines the lessons learned. Explaining an investigation of public records that revealed that authorities were late in responding to calls for help, Hale writes that a detailed report showing regulatory oversight and failed government inspections will soon be available for the public. On the bright side, the unfortunate incident lead to an increase in unannounced impact inspections with 39 already conducted in Kentucky and 32 in West Virginia. Read more about mine safety and open government on the Rural Blog. (For more on the relationship between the West Virginia mining accident and open data check out a video we produced last year shortly after the blast.)

• An additional open government section has been added to the New York Open Meetings Law . The Public Officers Law means that any meeting of a public body will be open to being recorded or photographed by New Yorkers but Justin Mosebach feels that for better transparency, the public officials should take the initiative and record the meetings themselves and make them public, making it more difficult for people to use public information out of context. See how he explains it on Video Minutes.

• Lobbyists in Florida will no longer conduct back-room business deals. According to Brittany Wallman, every lobbyist who meets with a Broward County public official will now be required to log into the county employee visitors’ list with details of who they are meeting. Get introduced to the county’s Open government website on Broward Politics.

When it comes to money in politics, Sunlight's Poligraft helps you see the relationships between organizations and the people in power through data collected from its sister project: TransparencyData.com. Another notable organization that tracks money in politics is OpenSecrets.org. With a concise mission to inform citizens, empower voters and advocate for a transparent and responsive government, the organization has garnered acknowledgment for their work. Now continuing the transparency movement is a new project that has been created to, as Stacy Donohue, director of investments at Omidyar Network, puts it  "bring attention to the nation's statehouses".

• The National Institute on Money in State politics (a Sunlight grantee) has started a new project that will involve hiring political reporters in every state capital to rank states for their “susceptibility to corruption”. The State Accountability project is funded by the Omidyar Network through the Center for Public Integrity, Public Radio International and Global Integrity. Read more as Anne Sherwood explains how the project will create online reporting and technology tools to empower citizens to demand for better accountability from their state officials. Its all on Follow the Money.

• The Josiah Bartlett Center for Public Policy, a free-market think tank in New Hampshire, has launched a new website for the state’s checkbook. NHOpenGov.org is a free, searchable online database that shows details of the state’s spending. Grant Bosse blogs that the website is funded by private donations with information collected through public records requests from official state sources. Check out how the think tank’s transparency director, Josh Elliott-Traficante, is giving the website a nod of approval on the New Hampshire Watchdog.

• Providence, Rhode Island has approved a new ordinance that will require anyone lobbying on behalf of a cause or business to identify themselves as such. Also included in the new ordinance is the requirement that lobbyists register with City Hall and file quarterly reports. Richard Dujardin writes that City Council president  Michael Solomon believes that, although other states may have requirements for lobbyists to register, Providence is certainly among the first cities to actually implement the law. See which lobbyists will be exempted from this new ordinance at the Projo 7 to 7 News Blog.

• Governor Rick Scott has responded to Florida’s struggle with transparency by creating a new website with searchable information on state payroll and retirement records. The website, Florida has a Right to Know contains information of all state employee salaries, though Bob Shaw notes that searches for the Governor's staff came up blank. Is this a half-hearted attempt at being transparent, from the governor whose closing remark on the website is “We will be better if you hold us accountable”? Find out at the Central Florida Political Pulse.

• Now here is an example of how good sunshine laws can help fight corruption: Samantha Swindler, a former news editor of the Times Tribune in Kentucky, noticed a discrepancy in record-keeping in the Whitley County Sheriff’s office and immediately got on it. When she appealed to the state attorney general for open records on the Sheriff’s office, she discovered that the Sheriff was not only selling guns in his barber shop, but also did not record any of these transactions. Caleb Brown shares more about this citizen investigation into public office misconduct using open records on Blue Grass Policy blog.
• Tom Jones, the former spokesman and policy-maker for Shelby County in Tennessee, is asking the Shelby County Legislative Delegation to oppose a proposal to close some public records - pushed mainly by companies looking for government incentives. In his post - “a solution in search of a problem” - he explores keeping the balance between special interests and government while doing away with the culture of secrecy that benefits special interests at the expense of the American people. Smart City Memphis blog has details.

For some states, Sunshine Week brings a wave of success for being transparent in state spending. While for others like Illinois which scored a C in the U.S - PIRG 2011 report, little or no transparency in government is starting to cost them. Listed by the report, under  “emerging states”  for having a transparency website with "less comprehensive information", Illinois neglected to adopt more successful models such as Kentucky's Open Door (which scored an A) and instead created reforms to their Freedom of Information Act - that made the State Attorney General, the major watchdog of the state's transparency. Now it is about to cost Illinois residents their right to know about government.

• Illinois Senate is discussing SB1645 - a bill that would restrict the citizens’ right to know under the FOIA Act and Adam Andrzejewski wants to know where state Attorney General Lisa Madigan is.  Citing non compliance with FOIA by the Attorney General's office, Andrzejewski writes that she instead enacted weak reforms that advocated more for the government than the public. By regulating the questions that the public asks government, this bill will require more transparency from citizens while the government remains in secrecy. Join Andrzejewski’s search for the state’s Attorney General on For the Good of Illinois.

• A senate bill that would have allowed Hawaii public employees to conceal their names, compensation range, and job description has been killed. Key among the information that would have been affected by the Senate Bill 1094, is the availability of the table of state salaries on the Hawaii Sunshine . See how Malia Hill is encouraging citizens to thank Senator Les Ihara (D–Kaimuki) and Senator Sam Slom (R–Hawaii Kai) for voting against the bill down on Rooted in Reason.

• With Wifi-enabled laptops and down loadable mobile apps, some of us don’t fully appreciate the contribution of public libraries to open government. Well Michael Casey, the Information Technology Director for the Gwinnett County Public Library in Atlanta is changing that. In his analysis of the recently released report by the Pew Internet and American Life , he explains the relationship between transparency and relevance. Whereas he notes that the two are important in the growth of public libraries, he stresses that the challenge remains in knowing the kind of information that the public needs so that libraries can have and deliver it. Read more on Michael e Casey.

• Chair of the New Dominion Project, Mike Signer is reviving an issue identified by Virginia newspapers - the state’s FOIA law needs improvements. Specifying an article by the Virginia State House News that highlighted ways in which the state can better their law, Signer warns of the dangers of the law reform including which include increasing fees for FOIA noncompliance. Now he is asking you if you think Virginia FOIA law is strong enough. More on the New Dominion Project blog.

When lawmakers introduce legislation that is supposed to increase transparency, naturally we expect that they will lead in the everything transparent movement - including the proverbial practicing of what they preach. Unfortunately, we are starting to see cases of selective transparency where public officials are willing to be "open" about their activities only when it suits them. What is worth noting are the adverse effects to not being fully accountable. Considering that financial benefits of being transparent are hardly discussed, perhaps bearing in mind the costs in lawsuits for agencies (including states) that violate sunshine laws - can be an incentive for lawmakers to observe the rules they set up.

• The New Mexico state Senate passed a rule that will prohibit the public from recording any of the public meetings conducted in the state capitol. Tracy Dingmann feels this is a violation of the First Amendment. Showing how transparency goes both ways, Dingmann asserts that just as Senate staffers are allowed to record public meetings, so should the public. Now she is reminding Gov. Susana Martinez to stick to her promise of “bringing the people to the process”. Read all about it on Clearly New Mexico.

• A new bill sponsored by state Sen. Joyce Foster is putting ethics in the Colorado legislature under review. The HB 1220 bill is intended to accelerate funding of state transportation projects but ethics monitors are concerned that its major supporter, the Colorado Contractors Association, also hires the Senator’s son David Foster as their lobbyist. Political investigative writer Chuck Plunkett sees a possible conflict of interest and sets the conversation going on Look Out Colorado.

• Health care providers, lobbyists, and residents of Minnesota have joined hands to bring more accountability to Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs). Paul Demko blogs that key among the proposals introduced is Rep. Larry Hosch’s bill that will boost transparency and financial stability in HMOs. See how HMO officials are claiming to welcome changes that increase accountability in their activities on Capitol Report .

• Texas Governor David Dewhurst has created a new open government committee to review transparency-related issues in state government, public information and open records. The committee will also help improve accountability in the legislative process, but journalist Mike Ward has his doubts. He notes that while the governor’s move is a step in the right direction, there has been history of the Senate holding meetings behind closed doors and this does not look like it will end soon. Read more on Postcards.

• The New Hampshire House is carrying out executive sessions immediately after general sessions without giving the public a right to know what is going on.  Referencing the “Hughes” case -- where the legislature does not have to obey the Right-to-Know law -- Lucy Weber writes that the Speaker of the House is not observing the same Sunshine law he introduced in the first place. Weber calls on residents of the Granite State to not sit back and take it. See details on Blue Hampshire Blog.

According to the Congressional Budget Office, the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) was set up to respond to concerns that the federal government was imposing enforceable duties on other levels of government without carefully considering the costs of these duties.  As a result, mandates such as the open meeting Act mandate that requires all meetings of the legislature body of a local agency to be open and public and all persons to be permitted to attend any meeting of the legislature body, can go unfunded if a state considers them costly. The debate now is whether an unfunded mandate means that it should be suspended.  Robert Wechsler does not think so. Here is why...

• Public meetings in California are threatened after the legislature suspended funding for local government's compliance with open meetings laws this month. Robert Wechsler, the director of research at City Ethics, deconstructs the consequences of this suspension and explains the importance of unfunded mandates and how they affect the open meeting compliance.  He recommends that the state makes more requirements of local government to create stronger ethics programs and foster sustained funding. More on the City Ethics blog

• When it comes to money in politics, David Morrison, Associate Director of Illinois Campaign for Political Reform does not mince words. He believes that campaign finance disclosure is crucial because it makes the public aware of possible conflict of interest where a donor may have vested interest in a political candidate. Take a look at how he criticizes Illinois’ long acceptance of political donations from corporations without full disclosure at the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform.

• Open government might become part of North Carolina’s constitution. While “keeping a watchful eye on government and politics in the Cape Fear Region” Pat Gannon blogs that a sunshine amendment to a senate bill will make government and local meetings open to the public and give them access to public records. Read how State Sen. Thom Goolsby’s sponsored bill is  receiving a nod from the North Carolina Press Association on the Cape Fear Watchdogs.

• A new bill sponsored by Governor Scott Walker is about to leave residents in Wisconsin without public transportation.  The SB 11 bill, which will affect collective bargaining for public employees will also lead to an end of the 47 million in federal mass transit that the state receives in aid. In her “My vacation day for transit and standing up for what I believe in”, Nikki V is seeking for a solution to the budget repair bill. Take a look at how she is making the call for legislatures to find a better answer on CurlyGirl.

• Senator Tanya Schuitmaker has introduced a bill that will require Michigan to post online all government-related information including contracts and grants. Former state representative Jack Hoogendyk, now the director of Citizens’ Alliance for Life and Liberty, reviews transparency legislation in other states and notes that the cost of creating searchable websites has been the recurring concern even when it has been discovered that the actual cost is far less than what was predicted. More of his blog on Core Principles.

When lobbyists play the influence game, a lot is at stake. And as our senior writer Paul Blumenthal noted, conflict of interest is first becoming an issue of public concern - even at the local level. Some bloggers such as Matthew Greller have advocated for the passing of legislation that will minimize the likelihood of conflict of interest while opening up more opportunities for the public to participate in government. Whereas this is a step in the right direction  towards opening up government, if there is partial or no disclosure of activities that go on between lobbyists and lawmakers, even the strongest legislation may not be able to promote the desired transparency.

• Larry Geller is asking the Hawaii Ethics Commission to pay closer attention to reports submitted by lobbyists. In an earlier post, he questioned the lack of full disclosure by lobbyists. Now Geller lays out how they are posting partial information on the Ethics website that is not reflective of  how much they spent. See how he makes a push for more disclosure including displaying a list of lawmakers who attend lobbying events on Disappeared news.

• A one-sentence bill that will require state house lobbyists in Vermont to wear ID badges displaying their names and who they work for has been proposed by State Rep. Jason Lorber. The bill, H-186, is aimed at providing better scrutiny of how government operates in a state where lobbyists have more access to lawmakers than any other state. Andy Bromage is tracking the lobbyist compensation disclosure and notes that it has been steady since 2007. However, close monitoring of relationships between lobbyists and lawmakers is necessary as the former are usually the sole source of information that is used to enact legislation. See how he explains this on the Seven Days blog.
• Matthew Greller, the Executive Director of the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns, is suggesting an alternative way of improving efficiency and transparency - passing conflict-of-interest legislation. He believes that this kind of legislation could reduce the skepticism that the public has towards government employees, especially when they vote on laws that affect their income. In his guest blog post for Aiming Higher for Indiana’s Future, he suggests that a public servant’s ‘expertise’ may not always be required in council decisions because the same information can be solicited in public hearings.

• Lobbyists in Providence Rhode Island may soon have to register with City Hall if a new ordinance from Council President Michael Solomon and Finance Chairman John Igliozzi is approved. Jason Haas references GoLocalProv that says  that some council members are concerned that the new reform will shut out community groups and nonprofits, but will make the city the pioneer in lobbyist regulation in the state. He explains more of the lobbyist legislation (which will have anyone who is lobbying council members, the mayor and other city officials and is paid for the services register with the City Clerk) on the Political Disclosure Corporation.

• A new bill in North Dakota that would widen participation in a database containing government information from state level to local government has been passed. Despite resistance from local government entities that claimed that this bill will be costly, Rob Port is urging residents to support it. Head on over to the Say Anything Blog to see all about it.

• If you are living in a big city and are looking for a way to reform your city’s government using technology, then The City Forward Initiative may be the right tool for you. Cliff Schecter blogs that the “tool that pulls public data from urban centers” and  “displays it in customizable graphs” will help the public access public information in a more understandable way. Check out the responses to this initiative on the Agonist.

The ancient conundrum of whether it was the chicken  that came first or the egg, may always  be a mystery. But when it comes to technology and innovation, it seems like the two drive each other. Echoing President Obama's call for innovation in his State of the Union address, creative thinkers have developed new and engaging ways to not only inform the public on how the government operates, but also take the lead on making sure that their innovations are in user friendly formats.  One such example is the Transparencity project...

• The William Penn Foundation, together with Technically Philly are partnering on a project that will use technology and journalism to increase the availability and use of “actionable government data”. Codenamed Transparencity,  the project will provide extensive coverage of issues on city technology policy, the Division of Technology and government data sets. Take a look at how Christopher Wink and partners strive to increase Philadelphia’s use of data to inform on policy at Technically Philly.

• Social media enthusiasts Gangplank and PhxData are organizing a CityCamp to open government using the internet. The CityCampAZ will bring together programmers, developers and government officials to discuss ways in which they can enhance their digital presence on the web. Steve Jansen shares details about registering for the unconference and more on the Jackalope Ranch.

• Massachusetts has a new transparency website, but Laura Crimaldi, a board member of New England First Amendment Coalition, is not convinced that it will improve openness in government. Created in part to track state funding and local aid to cities, Massachusetts Transparency still has a long way to go in increasing citizens’ trust in government. Notably, Crimaldi sites that  Massachusetts’ judiciary and Legislature branches are still exempted from the state’s public records law. She explains this and more obstacles on The New England First Amendment Center.

• Residents of Seattle Washington now have a new personalized way of accessing government information. The city has launched My.Seattle.gov which will let users customize their Seattle.gov homepage using widgets that give them relevant information. In a press release posted on the West Seattle blog, the city’s mayor Mike McGinn, hoped that the new website will make government more accessible through technology. Read more on the West Seattle Blog.

• Phil West from North Carolina is making the case for why open government needs “data psychologists.” In his opinion, psychologists help determine the usefulness of data and how interesting it will be to the possible recipients before it is released to the public. He uses the example of Data.gov to show how it has evolved from just posting datasets with unfamiliar terms to ordinary citizens such as CSV files, to using methods that are more familiar to users including cataloging. Check out as he explains how data psychologists curate data usefulness on Sector Public.

The Open Government Dialogue, a product of the National Academy of Public Administration stresses the importance of increasing the quality and quantity of citizenry enagement in local government: using the bottom-up approach. The idea is not to solicit the quantity of citizen engagement, but also the quality of their understanding of major issues.  We should move from 'my backyard' concept and get involved in sustained local programs that maintain our interest and ensure better contributions on how we can improve them. Indeed we could start by looking at our local leaders for ways to engage them in dialogue, just as Laurie Masterson did...

• When Laurie Masterson set out to find facts behind a salary hike of a new government hire, she instead got the skinny on the Arkansas House budget down-sizing. Now Masterson is demonstrating how citizens can be engaged in the activities of their local governments. See how she lays out the steps to take when you come across transparency related issues concerning leaders in your community. More on American Majority.

• A new rule is improving fiscal transparency in Texas: a 48 hour layout before senators have to vote on a summary of the final budget agreement. After failing to increase the number of days in which the senate has to review bills from two to five, Senator Kirk Watson hopes that this new rule will be a good compromise and bring more sunshine into the Texas budget proses. Curt Olson has more on the Texas Budget Source.

• Art Pedroza, the founder of the first political blog in Orange County, California, is raising a contentious issue in the city of Santa Ana. In his “When does the call for more transparency at city hall become stalking?” he questions whether some information about public officials should be made public. While he praises the usefulness of posting council meetings online, he cautions us to use discretion in our requests for public officials’ information. See more on New Santa Ana.

• The first week of the Hawaii legislative session is already revealing some flaws. As John Temple points out, the current legislature, ethics and lack of transparency are making it impossible for citizens to know about their lawmakers’ conflicts of interest as they make decisions on public policy. While comparing how Hawaii ethics laws are faring alongside laws in other states, Temple references Robert Brown’s article,  which suggests that this may be because information about lawmakers’ source of income is not available on the government’s website. See how he questions government officials’ commitment to transparency while providing a forum for Hawaiians and lawmakers to discuss issues affecting them on Civil Beat.

• The Oregon Department of Administrative Services is updating their transparency website with 2010 budget information. As a member of the Transparency Oregon Advisory Commission, Jon Bartholomew shows how the website is going to make government spending more transparent. Throw in your two cents on how it can improve at Blue Oregon.

It may not be all that, but the fact that actions from citizens have moved government hard enough for them to create open government initiatives is something to toot about. This is exactly what bloggers like Anne Galloway and Patricia Hart are doing. It is clear from these posts that demand for transparency is driving its supply. But just as citizens' need for openness determines its provision by government, so should their diligence in ensuring that transparency pledges made by public officials in the heat of electoral excitement are fulfilled, not just partially but in all their entirety.

• The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (US PIRG) may have ranked Vermont at an F in its transparency report, but the new Governor, Peter Shumlin, is changing that. The governor has issued a proposal that will improve the state’s public records law and give ordinary citizens access to government information. Blogging about Shumlin’s decision, Anne Galloway noted how this could open some doors and bring on new restrictions. She mentions financial malpractice and and increase in lawsuits against public officials who restrict access to government information as triggers to the governor’s decision. Check out how she lays it all out on VTDiggers.

• BurkaBlog (named for Texas Monthly editor Paul Burka) is buzzing with interesting conversation about Sen. Kirk Watson’s proposal to improve transparency in the Texas budget. However Patricia Hart  feels that genuine transparency requires change in the whole budget adoption process, so she has suggested that all deliberations should be held in public. She puts to task leaders and individual members of the committee working on the budget to become more inclusive and asks the media to cover the meetings more closely.

• The Department of Transportation in Rhode Island is selective with its access to public records. Apparently,  they only deny access if the purpose of requesting for the records is to sue, favouring media investigation over public inquiry. Ted Nesi believes that this selection should extend to include the general public. Take a look at how he critiques the state’s Public Records Act and maintains that there is a reason why they are called “public records.” Details on WPRI blog.

• Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has signed an executive order that will prevent him and his top aides from disclosing how much they earn in outside income.  While quoting an article in the Commercial Appeal, Tom Humphrey blogs that the governor is living up to his electoral promise which was to show his sources of income and not the amounts he is receiving. See how this is affecting transparency in Tennessee on the Humphrey on the Hill.

• Elected officials in Mooresville County, North Carolina may soon have a new code of conduct if a policy drafted by the town’s attorney, Steve Gambill, is adopted. Spurred by Mayor Chris Montgomery’s recent actions -- which Commissioner Mitch Abraham thought were “inappropriate and unacceptable” --  the new code will provide guidance on ethical issues for elected officials. But some city officials are not pleased with this possible change. See how Jaime Gatton details  their reactions on the Gatton Report.

• The Georgia Legislature is considering hiring an outside company to create new district maps. Blogger Mike Hassinger seconds the idea and thinks that outsourcing the redistricting process may have some benefits. Citing previous attempts of the state to create independent redistricting bodies, Hassinger weighs in on partisan concerns with redistricting and discusses how outsourcing it may cut costs for the state. See how the possibility of lobbyists getting the contracts to this process has stirred quite the conversation on the PeachPundit.

The term Gov 2.0 may throw some technologically challenged people such as myself, off . But Gov 2.0 guru Tim O'Reilly encourages us to look at it as “government as a platform”. In fact,  in his "What does Government 2.0 mean to you?" he gives citizens the opportunity to literally define it in their terms and be comfortable with how they see it working for them. This is why the latest blogosphere excitement about upcoming Gov 2.0 activities in various states make me want to share it with you. If the enthusiasm with which this year's conferences have been organized is anything to go by, then we can conclude by saying that the concept has succeeded in grabbing the attention it deserves, reaffirming O'Reilly's words that government can become a platform of, for and by the people.

• Gov 2.0 advocates have come up with yet another exciting program to open their government. The Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and EFF-Austin will be organizing a Texas Government 2.0 Camp on January 28. The “Making Transparency Work” conference will also bring together professionals from different fields to discuss ways of making government more open. See how Jon Lebkowsky is offering opportunities for anyone interested in leading a session on topics ranging from open Internet to government use of technology on the EFF-Austin blog.

• In a Q&A Yoli Martinez presents to us the future of government workings as California Gov2.0 supporter Alan Silberberg sees it. Silberberg’s idea of fighting obscurity in the operations of government is by giving citizens political power through the use of social media and mobile technology. Outlining the Los Angeles Fire Department and Orange County Transportation Agency as the leading Gov2.0 practices in Southern California, Silberberg hopes that this year’s Gov.2.0 LA unconference will bring on more citizen participation and government support for digital governance. More on the Socal Focus.

• Several counties in New Mexico are struggling to make their governments more open. But Jesus Lopez blogs that at most, San Miguel is only scoring a “D” in transparency. Drawing on the Sunshine Review’s findings , Lopez praises the state’s open government ranking but urges residents to make more use of public records laws provided by FOI. Read more on the San Miguel Reeper

• Rhode Island govenor Lincoln Chafee will soon issue a ban that will prohibit state officials from appearing on talk radio.  Though criticized by Buddy Cianci, a former mayor of Providence turned radio talk show host, Governor Chafee believes that talk radio is a “ratings-driven, for-profit programming” and does not think it is an appropriate use of taxpayers’ money. Hart Kirch shares how this is a slight on transparency and open government on the Hart Kirch Talk News blog.