Keep reading for today’s look at #OpenGov news, events and analysis including the importance of routine leaks, fighting lobbying secrecy in Europe, and building a culture around government data.

National News

• Plenty of super PACs like to spend their money on fancy lodgings and expensive meals. (Center for Public Integrity)
• The National Technical Information Service charges for a wide array of government information that also happens to be freely available online and easy to find via Google search. Pressure from Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) recently got them to pull reports that he had written. (Washington Times)
• A new article in Georgia Law Review makes the case that routine leaks to Congress, the press, and advocacy groups play an important role in oversight and presidential power. The author focused on leaks related to policy decisions, not criminal wrongdoing or waste. (Fierce Government)

International News

• A new campaign has launched in Europe to push candidates for European Parliament to advocate for transparency and stand up to corporate lobbyists and secrecy. (Tech President)
• The Transparency International chapter in the Dominican Republic has taken its fight against corruption to the streets. It is painting murals to advocate againset corruption. (Transparency International)

State and Local News

• Civic data standards could be a vital step to bring clarity in the growing movement towards data drive governance, but there has yet to be a wildly successful implementation. (Data-Smart City Solutions)
• Building a government data culture is one of the most important things that an open data policy can accomplish. (Civic.io)
• The Mississippi Ethics Commission ruled that public officials’ text messages about public business are a matter of public record. (Washington Times/AP)

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