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As Chicago police have made more gun-possession arrests, prosecutors are using the secretive grand jury process and securing more convictions.

The Illinois Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is the state law that governs access to public records. FOIA is based on the principle that citizens are entitled to information on […]

The Illinois Open Meetings Act is the state law that requires governments to conduct their business in public — including providing advance notice so citizens can attend, allowing for public […]

BGA OpenGov is the Illinois affiliate of the National Freedom of Information Coalition. Transparency is a foundational principle 0f democracy, and the BGA is here to advocate on your behalf.  Without […]

The BGA continues to expand its suite of custom, free tools and data available to the public.

What’s better about these maps? What’s not?

Advocates for fair redistricting have been trying for a decade to take the job of drawing our state’s legislative maps away from politicians and assign it to an independent panel. […]

Here’s what happened when we drew legislative maps without trying to rig the results. (Hint: There are no nice, neat squares.)