Illinois Winners of the Annual Sunny Awards

Sunshine Review, a non-profit that collaborates with individuals and organizations across America to promote state and local transparency, announced on March 10 the 112 winners of its 2nd annual “Sunny Awards.”  Award winners were selected through methods that analyzed the governmental transparency in websites of all fifty states and 6,000 local governments. Grading measured the proactive disclosure of information regarding budgets, meetings, elected and administrative officials, permits and zoning, audits, contracts, lobbying, public records, and taxes, as well as the ease of use and availability of information.

“Sunny Award winners deserve recognition for making information available to citizens and for setting a transparency standard that all governments can, and should, meet,” said Mike Barnhart, President of Sunshine Review. “Access to information empowers every citizen to hold government officials accountable. Official accountability is the cornerstone of self government and liberty.”

The 2011 awards recognize the best state and local government websites in America that exceeded transparency standards.  The Sunny Awards announcement preludes the launch of “Sunshine Week,” a period nationally recognized by hundreds of media and civic organizations, that celebrates the efforts of activists and the strides taken towards open government.

The 2011 list of Illinois winners include: (click on the website icons below)

For a full list of Sunny Award winners, visit here.