MEDIA ADVISORY FROM THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Monday morning, Feb. 3, 2014
Who: State Rep. Brad Hawkins, R-East Wenatchee (12th Legislative District), and state Rep. Gerry Pollet, D-Seattle (46th Legislative District). Hawkins and Pollet are co-chairs of the new, bipartisan Open Government Caucus.
What: First meeting of the Open Government Caucus. This first meeting of the new Open Government Caucus is open to legislators, stakeholders, media, and interested citizens.
When: Monday afternoon, Feb. 3, 2014 — 12 noon to 1.
Where:John L. O’Brien Building (basement), Room B-18.
Why: The meeting will include a presentation of a new online map that was produced by the Legislative Evaluation and Accountability Program Committee. A roundtable discussion on open-government issues will follow the meeting.
“We established the Open Government Caucus because members need a comfortable opportunity to pursue this much-needed conversation,” Hawkins said.
Pollet agreed, adding that the conversation must include diverse experts, broad concepts detailing the need for transparency in governance, and “new innovations that strengthen this transparency, as well as legislative proposals, and developments at any and all levels of government.”
The two lawmakers noted that newspapers around the state (the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, the Olympian/News Tribune in Olympia/Tacoma, and the Columbian in Vancouver) have editorialized, reported, and blogged regarding the push toward strengthening respect for the principles of open government. The newspaper items emphasize an obligation for elected officials and government staff to work harder at increasing transparency and accountability.