WashCOG invites nominations for access advocates
Toby Nixon and Justice James Andersen, inspirations for WashCOG awards
Nominations are now being accepted for two annual WashCOG awards, the 2025 Toby Nixon Award and the 2025 James Andersen Award, which will be presented this spring at the organization’s annual Sunshine Breakfast on March 13, 2026.
The Toby Nixon Award is presented to an individual or organization whose long-term commitment to the cause of open government is demonstrated through exemplary words or deeds. It was previously called the Madison Award, and was renamed when the 2021 award was presented to Toby Nixon, longtime president of the Washington Coalition for Open Government. As president emeritus, Nixon has remained active in the Coalition and committed to its goals.
The most recent honoree was The Tri-City Herald, recognizing the newspaper’s long commitment to defending Washington’s transparency laws in its op/eds and its use of the laws in its reporting. Other previous recipients include Michele Earl-Hubbard, a founding member of WashCOG and longtime advocate of access laws; David Cuillier, who worked with the Coalition as a journalist and academic in Washington, and is currently president of the National Freedom of Information Coalition; Judge William Downing, who served as longtime chair of the Bench-Bar-Press Committee and as a commissioner on the Washington Public Disclosure Commission.
This downloadable form can be used to make a nomination for the Toby Nixon Award. Nominations are due by Jan. 16, 2026. Current WashCOG board members are not eligible.
The James Andersen Award annually recognizes outstanding contributions to the goals of the Washington Coalition for Open Government. It can go to an individual or organization, and is named for the former Chief Justice of the Washington State Supreme Court. Justice Andersen was a founding member of the WashCOG board of directors and the first recipient of its James Madison Award (now the Toby Nixon Award). He passed away in May 2022 at age 97.
Last year’s award winner was journalist Robert McClure, a member of the WashCOG board and chair of its Government Committee, who monitors legislative activity and alerts others interested in local government issues. Previous honorees include Joan Mell, a government transparency attorney who has represented the Coalition in several cases, including a current challenge of the state legislature’s invocation of “legislative privilege” to deny any record access. Other Andersen Award recipients include Kate Riley, editorial page editor of The Seattle Times; Ed Clark, a longtime member of the WashCOG board; Mike Fancher, former executive editor of The Seattle Times and current WashCOG president; and attorney Bill Crittenden, a fierce supporter of open government litigants, often pro bono.
Download a nomination form for the James Andersen Award here. Nominations are due by Jan. 16, 2026.
