UF receives $100,000 to help celebrate, preserve freedom of information

August 15, 2006

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Marion Brechner recently gave $100,000 to the University of Florida to help sustain the vision of her late husband Joseph, who fought for freedom of information as an Orlando TV executive.

“Joe is the reason I’m here,” she said during a recent visit to the UF College of Journalism and Communications.

The college’s Joseph L. Brechner Center for Freedom of Information and the Marion Brechner Citizen Access Project will receive $50,000 each to hold a 30th anniversary celebration and set up a research service to help respond to legislation that would close access to public records and meetings, respectively.

The center – which educates legislators, journalists, activists, academics, students, and attorneys, journalists about FOI developments – will celebrate its 30th anniversary in fall 2007. During a two-day conference, it will also honor 40 years of the Freedom of Information Act and Florida’s Open Meetings Law.

“Forty years ago, our elected officials realized that an open and transparent government was fundamentally important to a democracy and passed laws to protect the right of citizens to know what our government is doing. Unfortunately, this right is under attack,” said Sandra Chance, the center’s executive director. “The conference will explore the issues and challenges to freedom of information and develop strategies for protecting the public’s right to know, both in Florida and nationally.”

The access project is creating FOI 911 – a Rapid Response Team. A graduate student will field calls about state laws relevant to proposed anti-access legislation.

“When citizens fighting to protect access to public documents are facing well-financed lobby groups wanting to keep specific records from the public, the pro-access interests usually have limited places to find the information they need for the legislative fight ahead,” said Bill Chamberlin, the project’s director. “This initiative will enable anyone with a major interest in protecting public access to have a chance to get the information they need about what other states are doing.”