The Blogging Mayor

Blacksburg’s Mayor Ron Rordam has a blog. It needs a little help, but we will see how it goes. He also has a twitter account. Oh and he’s on Facebook.

What next? A YouTube account?

WTG Ron!

Election Day

Well, it is election day. Many people have said many things on other blogs about today’s election. I have no horse in the race for some areas, but do in others. Since the polls close in a few hours and knowing that EVERYTHING I say people who read this blog will do, I will now post who I endorse (locally)… try to think for yourself and not take everything I say to heart.

Blacksburg Mayor/Town Council
Mayor – Ron Rordam. He is unopposed, so this seems like a no-brainer, but he is a great guy and will vote his mind and not the majority when needed.
Town Council – Krisha Chachra, Greg Fansler, Paul Lancaster, Tom Rogers. Blacksburg needs to have some pro-business folks on council. Not only pro-business, but pro-not-just-downtown-small-boutique-business. I love the freshness and entrepreneurialness of Krisha and Greg. Paul and Tom bring a nice, er, maturity to council as well as public service. Not saying they are old or anything.

Christiansburg
YES to moving the local elections to November. If anything, lessons are to be learned from this Blacksburg election, especially if the above candidates win or even come close. It allows for non-special interest groups to have their say. It saves money in the long run by having the election on ONE day. It also lessens confusion about where to vote for local elections, since voting places change when there is not as high a demand.

Montgomery County School Board
For District A, George Still. His platform is sound, especially the buying local part.
For District C, I cannot endorse anyone. Drema Foster is going for the write-in, but I know little about her.
For District D, I would stick with Jamie Bond. The main reason is more against Leonard Session. He and his wife have sued the school board, why would we want someone who sued himself?

Montgomery County Board of Supervisors
District A: Annette S. Perkins
District C: Gary Creed
District D: Jim Politis

FOIA: Freedom of Information Act

While my buddy over at New River Journal Blog is having a blast talking about local politics, I am going to take a break from such things and discuss FOIA, the Freedom of Information Act.

Pronounced as FOY-ah, FOIA, was a law passed in 1966. FOIA was enacted in 1966 despite the opposition of President Johnson to the legislation. Prior to enactment, there were several years of congressional hearings about the need for a disclosure law. The FOIA went into effect in 1967.

In Virginia, information on FOIA can be found at the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council’s website.

Here is a quick and dirty lesson on Virginia’s FOIA. It really is not that complicated of a law. Basically what it says is that anything that is used for the transaction of public business that can be seen can be FOIA’d. For example, if I make notes at work about what I need to buy at the store – that is not FOIAble. But if I make notes on a sticky pad about a government meeting or something related to public business, THAT is FOIAble. Yes, a sticky note is FOIAble.

Meetings
What is a meeting? A meeting is three or more members of an elected body (Town Council) or an appointed body (Planning Commission) or a quorum of such bodies. If one of these groups only had three members, then two would constitute a meeting. However, a meeting is not these people getting together for dinner or to play golf, unless public business is discussed. If I were  in the position to consult a council, I would tell them to be cautious about meeting for dinner or social reasons so as not to raise eyebrows in public about what business is being conducted behind closed doors.

What is FOIAble?
As I mentioned before anything that is used for the transaction of public business that can be seen. There are a few exceptions: benefits (not including salary), certain records that deal with economic development and the bid process, items with social security numbers must have the first five numbers redacted. There are many more examples, but those are a few.

Making a FOIA Request
FOIA requests can be made by citizens of Virginia. Governments do not need to provide documents for out-of-state requests, however, the person making the request can ask a friend who lives in Virginia to make the request for him, so it may be best just to provide the documents.

When asking to look at or get copies of documents, you do not need to say “this is a FOIA request,” although if you live in a place where you believe FOIA is not well known among the employees, it would be best to do that. All you have to say is “I want to see” or “I would like a copy of” whatever document. Be specific and reasonable in the request.

Once that request is made, the governing body has five business days (M-F) from the next business day to respond. In that time the body can do one of the following:

• Give copies of the requested documents
• Request more time via email or letter and then are automatically granted seven more working days
• Send a letter denying the request because the entire document is exempt under FOIA
• Send a letter saying the record does not exist, cannot be found, or does not exist yet (requests for minutes of a meeting that have not been typed yet)

But freedom is not free! At least not in Virginia.

The cost of a FOIA request is reasonable in cost. It has to be the actual cost of getting the information: hourly rate of the person doing the search (do not increase the cost by having the Town Manager do the search), accessing time, cost of supplying the records (time to do redaction), and duplicating costs. If the cost comes to more that $200, the body must provide an estimate and money has to be paid up front with the time for the request not starting until payment is made. If the cost is less than $200, then it is up to the requester to ask for an estimate.

Requested files cannot be requested to be in a format the body does not normally use. If a recording of a council meeting is requested and the person wants it in DVD, but the body only has it in VHS format and no DVD burners, the body does not have to provide it in DVD format or they can send it out, but at a higher cost.

The fee Virginia allows to be charged prevents people from coming in and making ridiculous requests – like copies of every town council meeting ever on record!

There is a lot to FOIA. If you as a government or as a citizen have concerns, questions or complaints contact:
Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council
General Assembly Building,
2nd Floor
910 Capitol Street
Richmond, VA 23219

Telephone (804) 225-3056
Toll-Free 1-866-448-4100
Fax (804) 371-8705
E-mail: foiacouncil@dls.virginia.gov

Congratulations Carol

Probably one of the biggest pain in the rears of Christiansburg government has won the Virginia Coalition for Open Government’s Laurence E. Richardson award for individual citizen contributions to open government. Congrats Carol for all your hard work in making government more OPEN!

BTW, another Blacksburg Town Council Candidate Forum is tomorrow night:
Town Council Candidate Forum, 7 p.m., Graduate Life Center Auditorium, Virginia Tech.

Not an Endorsement…

I know you guys have just been wondering who Burg Blogger endorses in the Blacksburg Town Council election. Instead of an endorsement, let me just throw out some opinions on the candidates based SOLELY on my observations (let me emphasize OPINIONS):

Susan G. Anderson (Incumbent)
Very nice person and a true activist. She was big on preventing Wal-Mart from coming to Blacksburg. Her signs are seen in the yards of BURG members.

John L. Bush
He has some great ideas for Blacksburg. What bothers me is that he gets real hung up if his last name is associated with the former president. Not that affects how he handles town business, but it does show where he stands politically. His signs are seen in yards of known BURG members.

Bryce Robert Carter
He is an undergrad at Tech. Very involved in environmental causes. I do not think he will win, but I will say this – he has been everywhere getting the word out about his campaign. I saw him at several summer festivals, even saw him going door to door. He has a great future if he keeps up this determination.

Krisha M. Chachra
If I were to endorse anyone, it would be Krisha. She was born and raised in Blacksburg, has education in planning issues, and understands that there is more to business in Blacksburg than just downtown. Bright woman. Exactly what Blacksburg needs. If she does not win the election, I would love to see her on the Planning Commission.

Greg T. Fransler
His platform is all nice sounding and all, but he seems to be negative towards Blacksburg when dealing with him outside the campaign.

Paul J. Lancaster
Once again, if I endorsed someone else, it would be Paul. He and I have not always agreed, but he is the voice town council needs. Unfortunately, his health has kept him from campaigning. If he is not reelected this time, it would be nice to seem him run again in two years.

Frank R. Lau
Frank has been active in all things Blacksburg. Agree with him or not, he has been coming to the town council meetings pretty regularly. That cannot be said about the other candidates. However, he is not into the social media as much, which makes it harder to get information on him.

Cecile G. Newcomb
She runs a business in Blacksburg that she started from the ground up. That takes a lot of persistence. His signs are seen in yards of known BURG members.. She also was a member of the Planning Commission several years back.

Robert T. “Tom” Rogers, Sr.
He really gives his all to the community as a VOLUNTEER rescue member. My only issue with Tom so far has been his late-coming into the campaigning.

Michael D. Sutphin
Kudos for linking to this site on his website! He is another activist for issues important to him. My concern is his platform is the same as some other candidates. What makes you different Michael?

Don’t Claim Ignorance

There are plenty of opportunities to find out what the candidates have to say!

Monday, October 5 and October 26, 7-9 pm
Blacksburg Town Council
Roger E. Hedgepeth Town Council Chambers
300 South Main Street
Blacksburg, Virginia
(Blacksburg forums will be rebroadcast on WTOB and will be hosted at www://blacksburg.gov/WTOB )
http://www.lwvmcva.org/2009CandidateForums.htm

Monday, October 12
The People’s Debate
The League of Women Voters of Virginia and the AARP of Virginia are co-hosting a statewide televised Gubernatorial Debate in Richmond at 8:00 pm on October 12th.
Richmond television stations CBS 6 WTVR and WCVE are co-producing and distributing the debate to all Virginia broadcasters. A total of seven CBS and Public Television affiliates have agreed to broadcast the debate.
http://www.lwvmcva.org/2009CandidateForums.htm

Wednesday, October 14
Town Council Candidate Forum, 7 p.m., Graduate Life Center Auditorium, Virginia Tech.
(Sponsored by Sustainability Week: http://www.recycle.vt.edu/sustain/)

Thursday, October 15, 7-9 pm
Virginia House of Delegates
Meeting Room, County Government Center
755 Roanoke St
Christiansburg, Virginia
(Video of this event to be hosted at: http://vaopengov.org)
http://www.lwvmcva.org/2009CandidateForums.htm

The LWV School Board Candidate Forum has already happened, but can be viewed at http://lwvmcva.org/CandidateForums/Guides_Videos.html

Blacksburg v. Christiansburg

Here is your chance to get it all out. Blacksburg and Christiansburg ARE different, but what does one town do that you would like to see done in the other?

Spit it out!

Someone Read My Mind

For days I have been thinking about posting about the fact that Christiansburg does not have a PIO (public information officer). Blacksburg and Montgomery County both do.

What does a PIO do? Well, they promote the town. They are the go-between for the media and town managers. The Town Manager does not need to be spending the time promoting and talking to the media. He needs to manage. Without a PIO, the media can hit up anyone in the town for a quote or information, leading to misinformation.

Well, it looks like Christiansburg is getting a PIO at some point.

It is about time!

Wilderness Trail Festival

The Wilderness Trail Festival is tomorrow in downtown Christiansburg. The Kiwanis have taken over this year, so look for more than in past years. The Tech game does not start until 3:30, so there is plenty of time to go to the festival before the game! The festival is from 9am – 5pm! Come check it out and support events in Christiansburg!

http://www.wildernesstrailfestival.com/

Blacksburg E-1 Precinct to Change for Elections and Voter Information

From Blacksburg Alert:

The Montgomery County Voter Registrar’s office would like to advise Blacksburg voters of a temporary precinct change and remind all voters to update their registration.

The E-1 Precinct at St. Michael’s Church on Merrimac Road will be temporarily moved to Kipps Elementary at 2801 Price’s Fork Road due to parking and convenience concerns. Voting will take place in the school cafeteria, which may be entered from the parking area.

New residents and others who have moved since the previous November election must notify the Registrar’s office to receive a new voter card and precinct information. This will save time and allow for easier access to polling places.

Residents may go to the library or post office to obtain a voter registration application or stop by the Voter Registrar’s office, 755 Roanoke Street, Christiansburg, Suite 1F, to fill out a change of address form. The forms may also be available at voter registration drives on college campuses.

The ballots will contain candidates for Governor, Lt. Governor and Attorney General. Depending on residence, voters will also cast ballots for Blacksburg Town Council, Blacksburg Mayor, House of Delegates (12th or 7th District), Board of Supervisors and Montgomery County School Board.

Town of Christiansburg voters will have a question regarding a change of town elections from May to November. As with all constitutional voting, there will be a space for write-ins.

The last day to register or update your registration is October 5. If you are not able to vote in person, you may vote absentee. Absentee ballot applications are available on the Virginia State Board of Elections website (www.sbe.virginia.gov) or can be picked up at the Voter Registrar’s office. If mailed to the Registrar, the absentee ballot must be received by October 27. In-person absentee voting will begin September 21 and will be available at the Registrar’s office until October 31.

To find polling places, candidate information, election results and more, visit
www.MontgomeryCountyVA.gov/vote.

For more information, please contact the Registrar’s office at 540-382-5741.