Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: KY Lawmakers display alarming misunderstanding of police, transparency
There’s a picture that apparently exists in the minds of the majority of Kentucky lawmakers. It’s a picture of a…
Amye Bensenhaver
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Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: No need for HB 520, clarification of exception to open records law
House Bill 520, “an act relating to law enforcement records,” is not — as its sponsor testified in the House…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: Can Governor, Auditor come to agreement for public good?
Gov. Andy Beshear and Auditor of Public Accounts Allison Ball squared off earlier this month in a legal dispute over the auditor’s…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: WKU open meetings controversy easily resolved — read statute
In the midst of an open meetings controversy at Western Kentucky University involving an illegal series of less than quorum…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: Transparency should be rule in KY penshioners challenge to hedge funds
The details are still a bit sketchy, but it is clear that attorneys representing the parties in Kentucky’s pension litigation…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: After legislature, a reminder of importance of state’s open records laws
As the ink dries on the last bills from the 2024 legislative session to be signed into law or vetoed,…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: Savor the moment but stay alert — as HB 509 died quiet death in legislature
In responses ranging from disinterested to comatose, Republican leadership registered little concern about the demise of HB 509 Monday night….
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: House Bill 509 did not emerge from the legislative session; will it be back?
Reporters frantically recapped the last day of the 2024 Regular Session — before the ten day veto period and final…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: Discussing House Bill 509 relating to access to public records and meetings
With only a few days remaining in the 2024 Regular Session, the fate of House Bill 509, “An Act relating to…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: Nearly 50 years of open records law dismantled in a matter of minutes
Approximately nine minutes. That was the duration of the March 12 floor debate in the House of Representatives on House…
Opinion – Amye Bensenhaver: FERPA wall keeps secret a school board’s ‘investigation’ of counselor
I questioned the Anderson County Board of Education’s refusal to disclose the investigative report into widely publicized accusations leveled against…
Kentucky Open Government Coalition counts down top open government stories of 2023
By Amye Bensenhaver Kentucky Open Government Coalition The Kentucky Open Government Coalition has once again compiled a list of the…
Op-Ed – Amye Bensenhaver: Court of Appeals got it right on public business and personal emails
Open government advocates are inclined to rhapsodize about every judicial victory that advances the cause of public agency accountability and…
Amye Bensenhaver: Arkansas rebuffs Gov. Sanders’ efforts to upend state’s Freedom of Information Act
It’s doubtful that Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders anticipated the national firestorm she would ignite on September 8 when she…
Amye Bensenhaver: Campbell County ed board v. Ken Moellman, open meetings challenge and masks
“The purpose of open meetings laws is to provide a window, not a weapon for political sparring.” Campbell County Board…
Amye Bensenhaver: Only grade for legislature, its supermajority, Daniel Cameron is ‘F’ on open records
Which of the following is true of the General Assembly and its supermajority? A. it excluded itself and it’s administrative…
Amye Bensenhaver: Attorney General’s disdain for transparency a preview of possible governorship
In a week that witnessed the state’s print media question the importance of a HuffPost article focusing on the Kentucky…
Amye Bensenhaver: Independence Day behind us, let us renew efforts to demand Freedom of Information
“I signed this measure with a deep sense of pride that the United States is an open society in which…
Amye Bensenhaver: A cautionary tale, indeed, for Cameron and his penchant for ignoring precedent
The Oldham County Circuit Court’s June 13 open meetings opinion in J. Albert Harrison v. Oldham County Ethics Commission should…
Amye Bensenhaver: Covington officials ignore real law to keep records from family in Daulton jail killing
For law enforcement agencies accustomed to issuing blanket denials of open records requests for records compiled in an “open” investigation,…
Amye Bensenhaver: What would ‘open government’ look like if Daniel Cameron is elected governor?
What would a Daniel Cameron gubernatorial administration look like through the lens of Kentucky’s open government laws? In a word:…
Amye Bensenhaver: After months of rancor at state level, Taylor Mill returns to ‘politics’ of the people
In a public meeting described as “strained,” the Taylor Mill City Commission recently focused on constituent concerns about a year-old…