Every once in a while we like to highlight how the BGA’s watchdog work is making a difference.
Jason Prechtel attended a BGA Citizen Watchdog Training event where he learned the ins and outs of public documents and how to file a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
As Prechtel told the Chicago Reader, “Afterward I decided to send a FOIA to the CTA, asking for documents including all participating bidders, dollar amounts of bids made, and communications between the CTA and outside advisors.”
But he didn’t get all the information he was looking for and sued the CTA to find out more about Ventra, the new fare card system.
In the end, and with help from the BGA’s outside counsel, Matt Topic, the CTA turned over the documents and said it was an innocent oversight.
For more information on the BGA’s Citizen Watchdog Training, click here or email aepstein@bettergov.org.
