I began 2020 thinking I was going to get back into FOIA requests. When the pandemic hit, that took a backseat as I became more concerned with me and my family’s well being – both mental and physical. My free time went into bingeing tv shows, playing my Switch, and starting to play guitar again.
However, I still did a few requests throughout the year. I concluded 2020 by asking some state and local organizations for copies of their internal newsletters.
Usually internal newsletters are a treasure trove of information: recipes, redacted birthdays, retirements, and book club announcements. This year the newsletters were spartan. I did find it interesting that there was not a single redaction in all of the records I obtained.
Illinois State Police
No newsletters.
Illinois Department of Public Health
Obviously they were very busy this year. No newsletters.
Illinois Tollway
They had a newsletter in February celebrating Black History Month and Mardis Gras. They then resumed publication in August.
As someone who has worked from home for nearly a year, the change was pretty easy. But for state agencies, this change required a big pivot and the newsletters later in the year highlight what this entailed for the Illinois Tollway.
Additionally, to meet social distancing needs, employees who cannot work remotely, now work in the main entrance of their headquarters in Downers Grove.
Metra
Metra only had one newsletter: Spring/Summer 2020. Of the few newsletters I obtained, it’s the only one to have a message from leadership acknowledging the challenges of the pandemic. 2020 was a hard year for everyone, especially those in the public sector as mass transit is essential to the livelihood of so many. His message comes across as genuine and very sincere.
Most of the newsletter is about safety and the challenges of the pandemic, but since a lot of railworkers work out in the elements, there are several pages on heat exhaustion and how to prevent it, but also a page and a half spread on bugs.
