National Freedom of Information Coalition
Protecting Your Right to Open Government

Author: NFOIC

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Delaware lawmakers table bill extending FOIA to nonresidents

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Legislation allowing nonresidents of Delaware to request public records under the state's Freedom of Information Act ran into a roadblock Wednesday in the General Assembly.

Currently, public bodies do not have to respond to FOIA requests from anyone who is not a resident of Delaware.

The proposed legislation, which was tabled in committee Wednesday, would remove that restriction while allowing state agencies and public bodies to charge higher fees to nonresidents, as long as they reasonably reflect the costs needed to defray expenses.

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Indiana Senate Passes Hourly Fee for Public Records Searches

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he Indiana Senate has approved a bill allowing government agencies to charge $20 per hour for public records requests that take more than two hours to complete.

The measure by Republican Rep. Kathy Richardson of Noblesville passed the Senate on a 44-3 vote Wednesday.

Under the proposal, the first two hours would not be billed. After that, hours spent working to complete the request would come with a bill that's the lesser of $20 per hour or the hourly wage of the employee completing the search.

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NEFAC Receives Barr Foundation Grant to Protect Freedom of Press, Assist Journalists

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The New England First Amendment Coalition is pleased to announce a $45,000 grant from the Barr Foundation in Boston to help strengthen journalism and protect freedom of the press.

“The Barr Foundation’s generosity will allow us to improve and expand our educational programming,” said Justin Silverman, NEFAC’s executive director. “These are challenging times for journalists and the public’s right to know. This grant will help NEFAC continue to be a leading advocate for the First Amendment and journalists throughout New England.”

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Texas: open records bills push back on court rulings

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Capriglione’s House Bill 792 would force government entities to be more specific when asserting the right to withhold documents the government believes would hamper a private company’s competitive stance.

The bill is a response to a 2015 state Supreme Court ruling that allowed aerospace giant Boeing to keep secret its lease agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense. The ruling carved out a space for private entities doing government business to protect information that those companies believe would give an advantage to a competitor or bidder.

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CoFOIC: ‘Cooling-down’ period for open-records disputes advances in Colorado legislature

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A required “cooling-down period” aimed at resolving open-records disputes without litigation continued its easy journey in the Colorado legislature on Wednesday.

HB 17-1177, approved by the House 65-0 last month after being completely rewritten in committee, passed unanimously in the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

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Michigan: Snyder signs law shielding records until contract announced

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Bids submitted by companies vying for a state government contract will be exempted from public-records requests until the contract winner is announced under legislation signed by Gov. Rick Snyder.

The law, which takes effect immediately, shield records containing a trade secret or financial or propriety information from being released under the state's Freedom of Information Act.

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U.S. Supreme Court Declines ‘Ballot Selfie’ Case; Right to Photograph Remains Protected

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The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to review a First Circuit Court of Appeals decision to strike down a New Hampshire law banning “ballot selfies.”

By declining to review the case, the court has allowed the First Circuit ruling to stand, a result the New England First Amendment Coalition calls a victory for the First Amendment and open government.

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Bill to make federal data open, machine-readable reintroduced in both chambers

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A bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers reintroduced Wednesday the OPEN Government Data Act — a bill that passed the Senate last year but stalled in the House.

The bill, which would set a presumption that federal data should be published online in a machine-readable format, has a broad support from open data advocates, government spending watchdogs and the technology industry.

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City of Seattle’s Open Data Program releases its 2016 Annual Report and 2017 Open Data Plan

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Today the Seattle Open Data Program has published its 2016 Annual Report as well as its 2017 Open Data Plan. As this is the first time the City has released either of these publications, it marks an important step forward in the maturation of our Open Data Program.

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