Access to information by local governments in Georgia is provided “at a higher level and commitment” than by the central government, according to a study by the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information.
The latest study was the second phase of research using requests to numerous government bodies to gauge compliance with the law. The requests concerned such topics as salaries and, bonuses, travel expenses, automobile expenses and telecommunication expenses.
Overall, of 4,366 requests, 45 percent (1,968) were answered completely, 16 percent (703) were incomplete, 3 percent (126) were denied and 36 percent (1,569) were “ignored.”
By contrast, the completion rate was 63 percent for local governments, according to the research.
The second study is not much of an improvement compared to the first phase study, according to the group, which blames the situation on both conscious and ignorant violations of the Georgian right to know law.
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