Best practices: Sen. Bill Holtzclaw’s blog

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Alabama State House

I’ll admit it: I’m impressed and maybe even a little jealous. This website has been launched almost two weeks and some days I find myself struggling to balance all of the responsibilities that come with making it a success and writing as much as I want to be and should be. Which is why I feel like I’ve run out of excuses as I’ve run into State Sen. Bill Holtzclaw’s website with blog.

As I look for topics and to get a handle on the beast that is Alabama politics and the goings on at the State House, I’ve come across some examples of best practices and some examples of times I say to myself “if the public only knew this was happening”.

One of the most impressive things I’ve come across is the website and blog that Holtzclaw maintains. He essentially gives his constituents nearly daily updates on the ins and outs of what’s happening in Montgomery. It’s quite impressive and certainly a great model that I wish more legislators and elected officials adopted.

Holtzclaw has maintained his site since December 2010 giving sometimes riveting accounts of what’s going on.  In a May 2011 blog, “Good, Bad and Ugly” he detailed a crazy night of attempting to pass the budget and the lengths that Democrats went through to get some pr0-life legislation passed.

Speaking to AL.Com this year, Holtzclaw said, “I answer to the people that sent me to Montgomery, not the people in Montgomery.” That strikes me as the attitude and level of commitment to their district that everyone should have, not just during election years or campaigning, but an every-day commitment to transparency and communication.