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D.C. Government Transparency or Records in the News

dcogcadmin | October 23, 2009

A handful of stories this morning cover some recent examples of a lack of transparency in the District government, or use government records to add depth to a story.

A handful of stories this morning cover some recent examples of a lack of transparency in the District government, or use government records to add depth to a story.

  • Mayor Fenty’s office has reportedly been funneling certain parks and recreation contracts through the city’s Housing Authority, a means by which these contracts avoid D.C. Council oversight.  Bill Myers has the full story in the Examiner.  All of the funneled contracts have been managed by a single company, headed up by an associate of Mayor Fenty.  The Council has requested administration representatives at an upcoming roundtable on the issue. 
  • A recent surprise in the D.C. budget: 15% cuts to homeless service providers, a reduction that they claim was not evident in the budget.  The administration has provided mixed messages about the reason for the supposed cut, according to the Washington City Paper — with the city’s human services chief observing in a Council hearing last week that the diminished budget is the result of fewer federal dollars added to the city’s funds, and Mayor Fenty stating that the budget is the same year-over-year, and that last year the contracter that oversees the program overspent its budget. 
  • The D.C. Wire, a blog covering city government on the Post website, reports more details about which schools and specialties were hit hardest by Chancellor Rhee’s recent reduction in force. The data, which D.C.P.S. supplied to the Washington Teachers Union, showed that 70% of the effects were felt in Wards 5 through 8.
  • A building used by the Metropolitan Police Department for interrogating youth has asbestos, the Washington Times reports.  Though the city’s Department of Real Estate Services has just confirmed the finding this week after conducting air tests, records obtained by the Times show that the city has known about the asbestos since at least June.