FAS

The James Madison Award and Sunshine Week

03.10.06 | 1 min read | Text by Steven Aftergood

Secrecy News is honored to be recognized by the American Library Association (ALA) with its James Madison Award, which is “presented annually on the anniversary of his birth (March 16) to honor those who have championed, protected, and promoted public access to government information and the public’s right to know.”

“This award is, we believe, a fitting recognition of your effective voice for transparency and against unnecessary — and often pointless — government secrecy,” wrote ALA President Michael Gorman (pdf).

“Your publication, Secrecy News, contains invaluable information and often serves as the first notice to the public of proposals to limit access to information.”

“The Project on Government Secrecy web site is a critical resource for all those concerned with access and secrecy issues. It contains a remarkable range of information on government secrecy policy and often is the only place that much of the information can be located,” Mr. Gorman generously wrote.

Presentation of the award is one of several ALA activities scheduled for Sunshine Week, which is next week, March 12-18. See this ALA news release.

Details of other Sunshine Week programs and resources can be found on the Sunshine Week web site.

publications
See all publications
Government Capacity
Policy Memo
Report
Four Innovations Driving Climate Progress in State Government

Cities and states are best positioned to design policies to accelerate clean energy, innovation, and economic development because they can design approaches that work in different social, political, and economic contexts. 

04.22.26 | 18 min read
read more
Government Capacity
day one project
Policy Memo
Outcome-Based Contracting Reorients Government IT Acquisition Around Public Value and Mission Results

Outcome-Based Contracting reframes procurement around the staged achievement of measurable mission outcomes rather than the delivery of predefined technical artifacts.

04.21.26 | 16 min read
read more
Emerging Technology
day one project
Policy Memo
Building Human Infrastructure to Mitigate AI Fairness Harms in K-12 Education

The real opportunity of AI lies not just in the tools, but in an educator workforce prepared to wield them. When done right, this investment in human infrastructure ensures AI accelerates learning outcomes for all students, closing the “digital design divide.”

04.20.26 | 5 min read
read more
Clean Energy
Blog
Beyond Cap and Trade: What’s Next for Carbon Markets?

If carbon markets are going to play a meaningful role — whether as engines of transition finance, as instruments of accurate pricing across heterogeneous climate interventions, or both — they need the infrastructure and standards that any serious market requires.

04.16.26 | 9 min read
read more