Michael Giudicessi, a prominent Des Moines attorney and one of the nation’s recognized First Amendment experts, is joining the Iowa Freedom of Information Council as its legal counsel, effective January 1, 2024. Giudicessi retired at the end of December as … Continue Reading
The start of a new year brings a new lineup of officers to the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. Allison Smith, news director of KCCI-TV in Des Moines, moves up to become president of the Council’s board of trustees. She … Continue Reading
The Quad City Times and two Times reporters were honored November 9 by the Iowa Freedom of Information Council for their coverage of the partial collapse of The Davenport apartment building. The Times and staff writers Sarah Watson and Gretchen … Continue Reading
This column was written by the executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. By Randy Evans The rationale behind Iowa’s professional licensing laws is simple: People in certain professions and skilled occupations are required to hold state … Continue Reading
Randy Evans, executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, wrote this column, which appeared in several newspapers and news websites around the state. Many decades ago, Mrs. Gentry and Mr. Halferty put up with an inquisitive kid’s … Continue Reading
This article was written by Clark Kauffman, a member of the Iowa Capital Dispatch staff. The Iowa Public Information Board is considering legislation that would enable government agencies to ignore, for up to one year, any public-records requests made by … Continue Reading
The Iowa Freedom of Information Council has prepared this sample public records request letter in response to journalists and other people asking how they can obtain the list of books their local school districts intend to keep students from having … Continue Reading
This column appeared in some Iowa newspapers and on Iowa news and commentary websites. The author is executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. By Randy Evans Around the time the “The Bridges of Madison County” movie premiered … Continue Reading
Iowa City police have identified the teenage son of University of Iowa men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery as the driver who was involved in a fatal traffic accident in late May. Police had refused for a month and a half … Continue Reading
A Clinton County judge issued a stinging decision last month that the Central DeWitt school board violated Iowa’s public meetings law when board members, the school superintendent and several other administrators met in a nearly two-hour closed meeting to discuss … Continue Reading