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Washington Coalition for Open Government @WashingtonCOG

WashCOG is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit advocate for the people’s right to know what their government is doing.

Joined March 2013
  • Tweets 24,131
  • Following 2,433
  • Followers 3,352
3,695 Photos and videos
You can also follow WashCOG on: ➡️ Facebook at facebook.com/washingtoncog/ ➡️ Threads at @waopengov ➡️ Instagram at waopengov ➡️ Mastodon at @WashCOG@newsie.social ➡️ And especially our website at washcog.org

Washington Coalition for Open Government

Washington Coalition for Open Government. 1,776 likes · 228 talking about this. The Washington Coalition for Open Government is an independent, nonpartisan and nonprofit advocate of public records,...

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WashCOG recognizes the exposure of "spiking" in Seattle -- boosting pensions at taxpayer expense. Manuel Villa of The Seattle Times gets a Key Award for his work. @seattletimes washcog.org/in-the-news/key-…

Investigation shows overtime raises pensions (and taxpayer costs) for police, firefighters

Seattle Times reporter Manuel Villa was honored with a Key Award for his deep dive into overtime “spiking,” which helped raise retirement pensions for some city employees.

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Check out WashCOG's review of stragglers and stalwart agencies handling public records requests! washcog.org/in-the-news/winn…

WashCOG identifies Winners and Sinners in records responses

Now we know which Washington agencies are speediest and which are slowpokes in fulfilling public records requests, based on our analysis of data filed with a state legislative committee for 2020 to...

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WashCOG is taking its fight against legislative "privilege" to the next level, seeking review from the state supreme court. washcog.org/in-the-news/supr…

WashCOG, Nixon ask Supreme Court to review secrecy ruling

Co-plaintiffs WashCOG and Jaime Nixon have asked the state Supreme Court to review a recent appellate court ruling that the state Legislature has a “privilege” to withhold internal legislative...

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Americans overwhelmingly support their right to access government information, a Sunshine Week poll reveals. What's more, the expectation spans political affiliation. washcog.org/in-the-news/amer…

Americans want access, national poll shows

Americans overwhelmingly support access to public information, according to a national survey released during Sunshine Week by the University of Florida. The support spanned the political spectrum..

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Check out some of the efforts to shine the light on access issues during Sunshine Week! washcog.org/in-the-news/suns…

Sunshine Week 2026 shines new light on access issues

Every year, Sunshine Week promotes awareness of access issues. Check out some of the coverage, discussions and alerts about state and federal sunshine laws.

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Washington's 2026 legislative session adjourned sine die -- and here's how WashCOG and our fellow access advocates think it went. washcog.org/in-the-news/2026…

2026 Legislative session ends: Here’s the scorecard

As the 2026 legislative session ends, WashCOG and its access allies count the successes and ongoing challenges to government transparency addressed (or not!) this year — plus a few bills on the...

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WashCOG honored transparency warriors at a packed Sunshine Breakfast to launch Sunshine Week. Check out our gallery. washcog.org/sunshine-breakfa…

Sunshine Breakfast | Washington Coalition for Open Government

The Washington Coalition for Open Government's annual Sunshine Breakfast is an opportunity to honor those who have worked for access and transparency inn government, and assess our challenges...

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Government transparency lost another round in WashCOG's legal challenge of "legislative privilege." Stay tuned. washcog.org/in-the-news/appe…

WashCOG responds to Court of Appeals ruling on ‘legislative privilege’

WashCOG responds to disappointing appeals court ruling on “legislative privilege,” supporting legislators who wish to withhold records from oversight.

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Join us for our sunshine breakfast, March 13! washcog.org/in-the-news/2025…

WashCOG to honor 2025 award winners at annual event

WashCOG is taking reservations for its annual Sunshine Breakfast, where we will honor exceptional work in pursuit of access and accountability. Learn about this year’s Sunshine Warriors.

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Another crusader for sunlight in government will be honored at our Sunshine Breakfast March 13! washcog.org/in-the-news/2025…

InvestigateWest to receive Nixon Award for holding power to account

The nonprofit newsroom InvestigateWest will be honored with the Toby Nixon Award at this year’s Sunshine Breakfast, recognizing its longstanding commitment to civic accountability.

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Here's another honoree for the upcoming Sunshine Breakfast! Check out details on washcog.org. washcog.org/in-the-news/bunt…

WashCOG - Washington Coalition for Open Government

The Washington Coalition for Open Government is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit advocate for government transparency & accountability in Washington state

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Transparency takes another hit in Washington -- But we're not through fighting! washcog.org/in-the-news/appe…

Appeals Court rejects challenge to state auto-deleting chats

The Washington state Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld a lower court’s dismissal of a lawsuit that challenged the state’s automatic destruction of agency text messages after seven days.

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Hear author Miranda Spivack at our annual Sunshine Breakfast! washcog.org/in-the-news/suns…

Sunshine Breakfast features author of access stories

Tickets are now available for WashCOG’s 2026 Sunshi ne Breakfast on March 13, which features awards for transparency warriors and a presentation by Miranda Spivack, author of “Backroom Deals in Our...

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Please tell a state legislative committee *now* that we don't want to water down the Public Records Act. Get details here -- we're on deadline! washcog.org/in-the-news/wash…

WashCOG seeks help squashing bill that threatens Public Records Act

WashCOG urges supporters of the Public Records Act to log on and oppose pending legislation that would water down our state transparency law.

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Join us in keeping tabs on our state legislature! Subscribe to WashCOG's weekly Olympia Watch. washcog.org/in-the-news/keep…

Keeping an eye on Olympia: WashCOG tracks bills

A push for more sunshine is behind the Washington Coalition for Open Government’s 2026 legislative priorities, and the Coalition has launched its annual Olympia Watch to keep you informed — and...

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WashCOG invites nominations for access advocates

Nominations are now being accepted for two annual WashCOG awards, the 2025 Toby Nixon Award and the 2025 James Andersen Award, which will be presented this spring at the organization’s annual...

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WashCOG welcomes nominations for outstanding access advocates of 2025! washcog.org/in-the-news/wash…

WashCOG invites nominations for access advocates

Nominations are now being accepted for two annual WashCOG awards, the 2025 Toby Nixon Award and the 2025 James Andersen Award, which will be presented this spring at the organization’s annual...

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AG Nick Brown is staffing his new Public Records and Open Government Unit. It will be headed by Morgan Damerow as the first chief transparency officer. washcog.org/in-the-news/stat…

State gets chief transparency officer

Washington state Attorney General Nick Brown has named 22-year department veteran Morgan Damerow as the agency's chief transparency officer. He will lead the office’s new Public Records and Open...

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Check out WashCOG's on-the-spot analysis of the appellate court hearing over whether legislators can withhold their records from the public. washcog.org/in-the-news/cour…

Court of Appeals hears ‘legislative privilege’ arguments

The Washington Court of Appeals is weighing arguments in a challenge of “legislative privilege” to withhold records from the public. See WashCOG’s analysis of the case and the hearing by attorneys...

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Yakima Valley College pays a former instructor $340,000 to settle PRA violation. washcog.org/in-the-news/yaki…

Yakima Valley College settles Public Records Act suit

Yakima Valley College has agreed to pay John Tappan Menard, a former history instructor at the college, $340,000 to settle a public records lawsuit filed by Menard in 2024.

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