Key Biscayne Independent: Censorship by invoice? Village starts charging $70 an hour for public records after settlement of gag policy lawsuit. “Village Manager Steve Williamson won’t say if his new policy to charge for public documents once free applies only to the media – like his media gag policy did. Still, theIndependent is now being charged for receiving government emails, which for […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/26/key-biscayne-independent-censorship-by-invoice-village-starts-charging-70-an-hour-for-public-records-after-settlement-of-gag-policy-lawsuit/

Yale University: Removing Government Notices from Newspapers Reduces Citizen Participation in Decision-Making . “In some states, lawmakers want to eliminate a centuries-old requirement to publish public notices about local government actions in newspapers. A study of Florida co-authored by Yale SOM’s Anya Nakhmurina found that weakening this rule appeared to decrease residents’ engagement […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/22/yale-removing-government-notices-from-newspapers-reduces-citizen-participation-in-decision-making/

TechSpot: A number of US cities are pulling the plug on Flock Safety’s AI cameras. “A growing number of US cities are ending contracts with Flock Safety, the Atlanta-based company whose AI-powered camera systems have rapidly proliferated across the country. Originally promoted as a public safety tool, the company’s technology is now at the center of a broader national debate over the use of […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/20/techspot-a-number-of-us-cities-are-pulling-the-plug-on-flock-safetys-ai-cameras/

StateScoop: New York City to host 10th annual Open Data Week. “The event, which originally launched as part the city’s 2012 Open Data law, will feature more than 80 free or low-cost in-person and virtual programs, including a new documentary film festival, a data art exhibition, a two-day conference and daily classes teaching residents how to make use of the city’s 6.3 billion rows of data.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/20/statescoop-new-york-city-to-host-10th-annual-open-data-week/

New York City Council: City Council Secures Commitment from Corporation Counsel to Release 9/11 Documents. “At today’s New York City Council Preliminary Budget hearing for the Committee on Governmental Operations, State & Federal Legislation, Speaker Julie Menin secured a commitment from Corporation Counsel Steve Banks that the City’s Law Department will create a public online portal to […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/18/new-york-city-council-city-council-secures-commitment-from-corporation-counsel-to-release-9-11-documents/

Gothamist: NYC Council pushes to ban stores from collecting biometric data. “New York City lawmakers are pushing to ban private businesses from using biometric tools like voice and facial recognition software to track the public.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/03/07/gothamist-nyc-council-pushes-to-ban-stores-from-collecting-biometric-data/

Fort Wayne Journal Gazette: Greater Fort Wayne distances itself from Google’s new website. “Google’s data center website, unveiled this week, was the sole product of the tech company, a spokeswoman for Greater Fort Wayne Inc. said Wednesday. Jennifer Atienzo-Fisher said the local economic development organization did not create the website meant to sway public opinion in favor of the […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/02/20/fort-wayne-journal-gazette-greater-fort-wayne-distances-itself-from-googles-new-website/

ComputerWeekly: Large language models provide unreliable answers about public services, Open Data Institute finds. “Popular large language models (LLMs) are unable to provide reliable information about key public services such as health, taxes and benefits, the Open Data Institute (ODI) has found.”

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/02/15/computerweekly-large-language-models-provide-unreliable-answers-about-public-services-open-data-institute-finds/

State College borough, Pennsylvania, says cyberattack disrupted network #CyberAttack #NetworkDisruption #MunicipalGovernment #Pennsylvania #IncidentResponse #EmailDelays https://dysruptionhub.com/state-college-cyberattack-pennsylvania/

Chicago City Clerk: Valencia preserves Chicago history with 800 newly digitized City Council audio recordings now available to the public. “Chicagoans now have an opportunity to take a deeper dive into the history of their city government as Clerk Anna Valencia will announce the launch of a webpage with more than 800 newly digitized audio recordings at 12:00 p.m. today during a panel discussion […]

https://rbfirehose.com/2026/02/08/chicago-city-clerk-valencia-preserves-chicago-history-with-800-newly-digitized-city-council-audio-recordings-now-available-to-the-public/