Sunshine Week 2009: March 15-21

Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum is urging state agencies to make openness their New Year's resolution — and to make it happen in time for Sunshine Week, which begins March 15. "As Florida is a national leader in providing public access to government records, merely responding to requests is no longer sufficient in light of the technological advances which make it infinitely easier, cheaper and more efficient to do so," McCollum wrote on his Web site. "Open government is not only good government; it is the right of the tax-paying public."

According to the press release announcing the initiative, in a letter to local governments, sheriffs' offices and school districts, McCollum "encouraged government and school officials to immediately place on their Web sites the e-mail address and phone number for their public records points of contact. Additionally, the Attorney General asked the government leaders to have their contracts and current budgets posted online in time for Sunshine Week, which starts on March 15."

Further, McCollum "reminded local leaders that with advances in technology, government in the sunshine can be as easy as uploading information to public Web sites." To ensure staff receive proper training in the state's Sunshine Laws, the attorney general's office is preparing free, online resources for government employees. Read more ….

Read What Experts, Advocates Say About
How the Obama Administration Can Improve Government Transparency

President-elect Obama is proposing an ambitious agenda for increasing government openness through technology and good old-fashioned sunshine. Read more here.

Get the Goods

Whether you support open government or just think Ronnie and Donnie are cute — or maybe even a little of both — you now can get exclusive Sunshine Week and Sunshine Campaign merchandise from our online store at CafePress.com.

Traditional Sunshine Week logo merchandise is available in our main shop, and we've created two others. One features the Sunshine Campaign "spokesmammals" Ronnie & Donnie on T-shirts, sweatshirts, caps, mugs, clocks, notepads and more. The other utilizes the Vote for Sunshine campaign button imagery on similar items, including actual campaign-style buttons.

Any organization interested in co-branding products with its logo and the Sunshine Week merchandise should contact Sunshine Week Coordinator Debra Gersh Hernandez.