Texas FOI Foundation’s Annual Conference Slated for Sept. 21

posted on 8.13.2018

The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas’ annual state conference is set for Sept. 21 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Austin.

The daylong event, “Texas: Let the Sun Shine,” features keynote speaker Glenn Hegar, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts as well as Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp.

FOIFT will present its prestigious James Madison Award and the State Bar of Texas will present its Gavel Awards during the luncheon portion of the program.

Individual sessions will explore the Sunshine Coalition and why it is needed now and in 2019 during the Texas legislative session to pass much-needed reforms to the Texas Public Information Act.

The coalition, of which TAB is a key member, seeks to undo the damage caused by two negative Texas Supreme Court decisions in the summer of 2015.

Both have hampered public access to information on how taxpayer dollars being spent by state and local government.

FOIFT and the Texas Press Association are also part of the coalition which includes a diverse collection of interest groups that range from the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation to the Texas chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Another session will explore information roadblocks governmental bodies have used to stymie reporters and as well as look at ways to overcome those obstacles.

An afternoon session will explore the current controversy over Free Speech on Texas college campuses. 

For more information on the conference and to register, click here.

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