INBA's membership will be asked to consider a major set of revisions to its by-laws at the October 2, 2010 lunch meeting in Bloomington. These revisions cover a wide range of issues, from categories of membership to simple spelling and grammar corrections.

The By-laws committee sought the input of the Board of Directors during a marathon session at the Spring 2010 convention in Oak Brook, during which the existing by-laws were combed line-by-line to correct inconsistencies. These final proposed revisions will require a vote of two-thirds of eligible members present at the Oct. 2nd meeting.
 

These revisions have been published this summer in the TuneIN. They are also available online for download here.

Members with questions or comments about the proposed changes are encouraged to contact committee members Jennifer Fuller, H Wayne Wilson  or Rich Egger (via the Board page) or post comments in the INBA Forum.

The INBA Fall 2010 Convention will be held at the Parke Hotel and Conference Center in Bloomington on Oct. 1st - 3rd.  Attendees can get a special discount on rooms - $99/night plus tax.  You'll need to call the hotel directly at (309) 662-4300 and request the INBA convention rate.  The deadline to secure this special rate is September 15th!

The most recent back issues of the INBA TuneIN newsletter are now online for members.  To access them, you need to log into your INBA.net account (using the fields on the right of the page) and then select "tuneIN Back Issues" from the menu on the left.

Having trouble with your login?  Contact Jim Gee for help.

The Illinois News Broadcasters Association (INBA) is pleased that Gov. Pat Quinn has used his amendatory veto pen to reduce the scope of a bill affecting the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), but wishes the governor had fully vetoed the measure. HB 5154 would have exempted the performance evaluations of all public employees in Illinois from FOIA. Quinn reduced the impact of it by limiting the scope to only police officers.

INBA applauds Quinn for recognizing that 5154 was, in his words, "a departure from the groundbreaking legislation that I approved just last year, making our State's open information laws among the most robust in the entire country." However, it is important to understand that the governor's action to allow the shielding of law enforcement personnel evaluations allows a system whereby the public will not know if police officers are acting in accordance with the law, or abusing their power.

The INBA Board of Directors will meet Saturday, July 17, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. in Springfield.  They'll be at the WTAX studios at 3501 E. Sangamon.  INBA members are welcome to attend.

During her confirmation hearings this week, Supreme Court nominee Elana Kagan gave an emphatic "yes" to the idea of televising the high court's proceedings.  Read more about it here.  You can also watch her testimony (with a lengthy introduction by Sen. Spector... and a little humor to boot): 

Thanks to INBA Board member Amanda Vinciky for the heads up!

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INBA is encouraging Gov. Pat Quinn to put a stop to attempts to change the recently revised FOIA law.  Click here to read the letter sent to the governor this week.

Also, some other news coverage concerning HB 5154:

Statehouse News Service story on the FOIA amendments:
http://illinois.statehousenewsonline.com/2752/unions-push-to-remove-evaluations-from-new-foia-law/

Capitol Fax post about the Senate committee hearing:
http://thecapitolfaxblog.com/2010/04/24/saturday-videos-kirk-radogno-brady-cohen-hahn-piccioli-righter-paul-ozzieball/

Illinois Statehouse News posted an interview with INBA President Melissa Hahn concerning HB5154.   

From Bob Roberts, INBA's FOI/OMA Chair:

     The misguided bill that would put all public employee evaluations off limits to the public and the press in Illinois was rammed through the Illinois Senate Labor Committee 7-3 this week. It now goes to the Senate floor, where it faces its final legislative vote. The time to write, e-mail or call your legislator urging opposition to the bill is now, and if you commit those thoughts to paper or e-mail, copy Gov. Pat Quinn.