[Lwvcnmtopics] LWVCNM Lunch Meeting - Shannon Kunkel New Mexico Foundation for Open Government - Thursday 3/10 at Noon

[Starlyn Brown]

League Members,

We have another great presenter in March!  Please join us Thursday, March 10th for our monthly meeting.  Once again it will be a zoom meeting, invitation is at the end.

In recognition of Sunshine Week (or month!), LWVCNM welcomes as its March 10 luncheon speaker, Shannon Kunkel, Executive Director of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government.

The New Mexico Foundation for Open Government (FOG) is the state’s leading transparency watchdog. Founded in 1989, FOG is a statewide nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with a single mission to help New Mexicans understand and exercise their rights and responsibilities under New Mexico’s “sunshine laws” – the Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA) and the Open Meetings Act (OMA). 

As part of this mission, FOG informs, trains and assists state and local public bodies about their obligations to the public by ensuring access to public records and public meetings. On the flip side, FOG educates, advocates and when necessary, litigates to defend the public’s right to know.

FOG’s founder and long-time executive director, the late Bob Johnson, used to tell a story about the organization’s name. When questioned about why an open government group would name itself FOG, Bob responded that NMFOG stood for “no more fog.” True that.

In recognition of Sunshine Week, Shannon Kunkel will provide information about the work FOG does in New Mexico and how it is growing its capacity and expanding the services it provides. She will describe FOG’s hotline program and the help it provides to anyone encountering problems obtaining records or gaining access to meetings, giving some examples of hotline calls and resolutions.

Shannon will centrally focus her talk on issues at the legislature, both procedural improvements to allow better public access, and legislation with transparency implications. Specifically, she will talk about the ways in which a hybrid session (virtually and in-person) both benefits and hinders the ability of New Mexicans to participate in the legislative process. She will discuss legislative rules, such as committee webcasting, the use of “dummy” bills, the publication of amendments to legislation and more. Shannon hopes to touch upon the Independent Redistricting Commission constitutional amendment and discuss bills on the horizon in 2023 relating to financial disclosures of candidates, elected officials and lobbyists. 

Shannon has a passion for transparency and civic participation. From 2014 through 2016, she served as the part-time membership director for FOG, then connected with Common Cause New Mexico and began working as a consultant, managing digital and social media, as well as outreach and development for the organization. In January of this year, Shannon rejoined FOG as the executive director and is eager to grow and expand FOG’s presence in New Mexico.

Shannon is an Albuquerque native and graduated with honors from the University of New Mexico, where she studied journalism, advertising and marketing. Shannon has worked in the marketing departments of the Roadrunner Food Bank and the Albuquerque Publishing Company. She has been married since the age of 18 to her wonderful husband, Max, and is mother to two spunky young children, Harlow (5) and Pierce (4). 

Zoom Invitation

LWVCNM Zoom is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Sunshine Week - Shannon Kunkel
Time: Mar 10, 2022 12:00 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)

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