Jan.10th
Jan. 1, 1994
A number of people have asked me when and how California legislative
information, statutes and constitution will be available online.
*CURRENT* LAW MANDATES ACCESS, *NOW*
AB1624 has become California Gov.Code 10248. It is state law, effective
today. It requires that legislative and statute information - described in
detail - "shall be made available to the public ... by way of the largest
non-proprietary, nonprofit cooperative public computer network" [i.e., the
Internet and, thus, all the nets gatewayed to it].
NO DEFINITIVE INFORMATION
I called the Legislative Data Center the morn of Dec.31st -- and was able
to leave voice-mail (though I didn't try all their management). Next, the
bill-author's office said they'd been told it wouldn't be online by the 1st
(as required by law), but might be expected by about Jan. 10th.
*When I know more, you'll know more.*
LEGISLATURE HAS HAD THE EQUIPMENT & NET CONNECTION SINCE SUMMER
The Legislative Data Center installed a 1.544-megabit, T-1 Internet
connection last May. They have had a file-server in-house since summer.
By August, they knew AB1624 was likely to pass. On Sep.10th, it passed
the Legislature. On Oct.11th, the Governor signed it into law.
LEGISLATURE ALREADY HAS *ALL* OF THE REQUIRED INFORMATION COMPUTERIZED
LDC has *all* of the data completely computerized in their nonproprietary
format (CGML, California Generalized Markup Language), and have been selling
it on magtape for years.
They have clear *permission* to release it in that format: "The information
may also be made available by any other means of access that would facilitate
public access to the information." [10248(10)(b)]. (One version of AB1624
*required* release of the data in that valuable, useful CGML format -- while
permitting any other formats they desired. But they got a Senate committee
to remove it as a requirement.)
They *could* release it in the form they sell, along with their already-
computerized CGML documentation. And, *also* release it in other formats
that *might* be easier for computer-assisted users, once they implement them.
Multiple formats are common. Almost everyone who uses a word-processor - much
less fetches files across the global Internet - is certainly accustomed to
seeing the same information computerized in different forms (e.g., ASCII text
vs. word-processor enriched text, Word format vs. WordPerfect format, etc.).
More than likely however, they will just ignore the law with impunity until
they have a format-converter they like and learn how to run their file-server.
WHEN THEY'RE READY, FTP and FTP-MAIL, ONLY
After the bill passed, an LDC official said that they were planning on only
offering the information in ASCII files, by ftp and ftp-mail (file-transfer
protocol). No gopher, WAIS, WWW, Veronica or other indexing an search tools.
. That's fine with me. If we can just have net-access to the data in *some*
format, service-oriented sites across the nets will index them and provide
the usual search and retrieval tools - often for unlimited free public use.
LDC is apparently having enough trouble just putting the computer files
they have been selling for years onto the Internet server they've had for
mnths. It's fine with me if they enter the net-swamp slowly, though it'd be
nice for them to take a simple first step - as required by law.
However, I *sincerely* believe that LDC staff honestly are *actively* working
to become operational, and LDC will stop violating the law -- the privilege
of nobility -- as soon as it can be done in a way their bosses like.
Mo' as it Is. [Feel free to circulate this however you wish.]
--jim
[If you think *this* is inflmatory, you shoulda seen my first 4 drafts.
:-) ]
P.S. --
EMAIL HELL <blush!>
I'm monumentally backlogged in my email, but have cut it from ~2,100 msgs
down to "merely" ~1,600, and hope to clean it out in the next week or so.
[For fast contact <blush! blush!!>, my voice # is 415-851-7075.]
COMPUTERIZED POLITICAL DISCLOSURES -- CAMPAIGN FINANCES, LOBBYISTS, ETC.
I've just completed an implementation proposal for requiring computerized
filings of and public-access to state and local campaign-finance, lobbyist
and officials' economic-interest disclosures. Language mandating these
computerized disclosures will probably be amended into SB758 (Hayden) and
included in new legislation (Speier), and already has a broad spectrum of
support. But, like everything, it will need massive public pressure.
More in separate postings, "real soon now." (It's my current main-project.)
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 03/09/00 PST