OLR Bill Analysis
AN ACT CONCERNING THE POSTING OF PUBLIC AGENCY MINUTES UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.
This bill extends, from seven to 14 days after a meeting, the deadline by which all public agencies must post meeting minutes on their available web sites. Such minutes are required to be publicly disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and still must be available for public inspection within seven days after a meeting, as under current law.
Under the bill, a municipal public agency that does not comply with this requirement does not violate FOIA if:
1. from October 1, 2008 until December 31, 2009, it files a notice with the applicable town clerk indicating the reason for its failure to post the minutes and
2. from January 1, 2010 to January 1, 2011, after a vote of its legislative body, it files a notice with the Freedom of Information Commission (FOIC) describing the hardship that prevents it from complying.
Any notice filed with a town clerk must also be filed with the FOIC for informational purposes.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Administration and Elections Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea |
13 |
Nay |
2 |
(03/06/2009) |