Countryside receives the Sunshine Award

On April 9, the City of Countryside was presented the Illinois Policy Institute’s Sunshine Award during their monthly City Council meeting. Countryside earned this award by taking the initiative to be transparent to their residents – posting vital government information online for the public to access. Scoring 93.1 percent on the Institute’s 10-Point Transparency Checklist,...

On April 9, the City of Countryside was presented the Illinois Policy Institute’s Sunshine Award during their monthly City Council meeting. Countryside earned this award by taking the initiative to be transparent to their residents – posting vital government information online for the public to access.

Scoring 93.1 percent on the Institute’s 10-Point Transparency Checklist, the City of Countryside is currently the 14th highest scoring out of all scored government entities. Sixty-two government bodies have received the Sunshine Award to date, and more than 320 local governments have received an official score.

In a state like Illinois – full of waste, corruption and a lack of faith in government – Countryside is taking the initiative to push back. They have become more transparent to residents – by posting online government workers’ compensation, contracts, meeting documents and other important information.

This is a noble effort in being an open and honest government.

To see what you can do to further promote government transparency, please go to OpenIllinois.org.

In photo: L to R, Steve Jasinski, City Treasurer, Justin Hegy, Illinois Policy Institute, Steve Drazner, Finance Director