Longtime California open government watchdog Terry Francke (pictured) had produced a list of 10 lapses and limitations to California’s laws requiring open records and open meetings — and 10 solutions to those problems. For instance, how do you investigate whether a city council discussed something in closed session that should have been dealt with openly? He’s got a solution in this opinion piece. And many of his solutions have already been tried by one community or another, so they’re not unproven ideas. Francke is general counsel to Californians Aware, a group which helps journalists pry open the doors of government. (Francke’s photo by Larry Dalton, from the Sacramento News & Review web site.)