2012 -- H 7134

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LC00538

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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2012

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A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC RECORDS - ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS

     Introduced By: Representatives DaSilva, Reilly, Tomasso, Johnston, and Azzinaro

     Date Introduced: January 17, 2012

     Referred To: House Judiciary

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Section 38-2-2 of the General Laws in Chapter 38-2 entitled "Access to

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Public Records" is hereby amended to read as follows:

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     38-2-2. Definitions. -- As used in this chapter:

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      (1) "Agency" or "public body" shall mean any executive, legislative, judicial, regulatory,

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or administrative body of the state, or any political subdivision thereof; including, but not limited

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to, any department, division, agency, commission, board, office, bureau, authority, any school,

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fire, or water district, or other agency of Rhode Island state or local government which exercises

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governmental functions, any authority as defined in section 42-35-1(b), or any other public or

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private agency, person, partnership, corporation, or business entity acting on behalf of and/or in

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place of any public agency.

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      (2) "Chief administrative officer" means the highest authority of the public body as

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defined in subsection (a) of this section.

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      (3) "Prevailing plaintiff" means and shall include those persons and entities deemed

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prevailing parties pursuant to 42 U.S.C. section 1988.

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      (4) "Public business" means any matter over which the public body has supervision,

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control, jurisdiction, or advisory power.

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      (5) (i) "Public record" or "public records" shall mean all documents, papers, letters,

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maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, magnetic or other tapes, electronic data

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processing records, computer stored data (including electronic mail messages, except specifically

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for any electronic mail messages of or to elected officials with or relating to those they represent

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and correspondence of or to elected officials in their official capacities) or other material

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regardless of physical form or characteristics made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in

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connection with the transaction of official business by any agency. For the purposes of this

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chapter, the following records shall not be deemed public:

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      (A) (I) All records which are identifiable to an individual applicant for benefits, client,

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patient, student, or employee, including, but not limited to, personnel, medical treatment, welfare,

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employment security, pupil records, all records relating to a client/attorney relationship and to a

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doctor/patient relationship, and all personal or medical information relating to an individual in

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any files, including information relating to medical or psychological facts, personal finances,

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welfare, employment security, student performance, or information in personnel files maintained

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to hire, evaluate, promote, or discipline any employee of a public body; provided, however, with

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respect to employees, the name, gross salary, salary range, total cost of paid fringe benefits, gross

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amount received in overtime, and other remuneration in addition to salary, job title, job

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description, dates of employment and positions held with the state or municipality, work location,

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business telephone number, the city or town of residence, and date of termination shall be public.

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     Provided further, that without limiting the foregoing, all provisions of individual

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employment contracts of public employees and said contracts in their entirety shall be deemed to

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be public records.

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      (II) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, or any other provision of the general

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laws to the contrary, the pension records of all persons who are either current or retired members

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of the retirement systems established by the general laws as well as all persons who become

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members of those retirement systems after June 17, 1991 shall be open for public inspection.

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"Pension records" as used in this section shall include all records containing information

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concerning pension and retirement benefits of current and retired members of the retirement

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systems established in title 8, title 36, title 42, and title 45 and future members of said systems,

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including all records concerning retirement credits purchased and the ability of any member of

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the retirement system to purchase retirement credits, but excluding all information regarding the

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medical condition of any person and all information identifying the member's designated

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beneficiary or beneficiaries.

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      (B) Trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person, firm,

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or corporation which is of a privileged or confidential nature.

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      (C) Child custody and adoption records, records of illegitimate births, and records of

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juvenile proceedings before the family court.

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      (D) All records maintained by law enforcement agencies for criminal law enforcement

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and all records relating to the detection and investigation of crime, including those maintained on

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any individual or compiled in the course of a criminal investigation by any law enforcement

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agency. Provided, however, such records shall not be deemed public only to the extent that the

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disclosure of the records or information (a) could reasonably be expected to interfere with

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investigations of criminal activity or with enforcement proceedings, (b) would deprive a person of

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a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication, (c) could reasonably be expected to constitute an

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unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, (d) could reasonably be expected to disclose the

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identity of a confidential source, including a state, local, or foreign agency or authority, or any

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private institution which furnished information on a confidential basis, or the information

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furnished by a confidential source, (e) would disclose techniques and procedures for law

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enforcement investigations or prosecutions, or would disclose guidelines for law enforcement

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investigations or prosecutions or (f) could reasonably be expected to endanger the life or physical

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safety of any individual. Records relating to management and direction of a law enforcement

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agency and records or reports reflecting the initial arrest of an adult and the charge or charges

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brought against an adult shall be public.

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      (E) Any records which would not be available by law or rule of court to an opposing

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party in litigation.

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      (F) Scientific and technological secrets and the security plans of military and law

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enforcement agencies, the disclosure of which would endanger the public welfare and security.

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      (G) Any records which disclose the identity of the contributor of a bona fide and lawful

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charitable contribution to the public body whenever public anonymity has been requested of the

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public body with respect to the contribution by the contributor.

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      (H) Reports and statements of strategy or negotiation involving labor negotiations or

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collective bargaining.

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      (I) Reports and statements of strategy or negotiation with respect to the investment or

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borrowing of public funds, until such time as those transactions are entered into.

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      (J) Any minutes of a meeting of a public body which are not required to be disclosed

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pursuant to chapter 46 of title 42.

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      (K) Preliminary drafts, notes, impressions, memoranda, working papers, and work

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products; provided, however, any documents submitted at a public meeting of a public body shall

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be deemed public.

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      (L) Test questions, scoring keys, and other examination data used to administer a

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licensing examination, examination for employment or promotion, or academic examinations;

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provided, however, that a person shall have the right to review the results of his or her

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examination.

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      (M) Correspondence of or to elected officials with or relating to those they represent and

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correspondence of or to elected officials in their official capacities.

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      (N) The contents of real estate appraisals, engineering, or feasibility estimates and

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evaluations made for or by an agency relative to the acquisition of property or to prospective

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public supply and construction contracts, until such time as all of the property has been acquired

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or all proceedings or transactions have been terminated or abandoned; provided the law of

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eminent domain shall not be affected by this provision.

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      (O) All tax returns.

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      (P) All investigatory records of public bodies, with the exception of law enforcement

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agencies, pertaining to possible violations of statute, rule, or regulation other than records of final

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actions taken provided that all records prior to formal notification of violations or noncompliance

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shall not be deemed to be public.

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      (Q) Records of individual test scores on professional certification and licensing

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examinations; provided, however, that a person shall have the right to review the results of his or

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her examination.

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      (R) Requests for advisory opinions until such time as the public body issues its opinion.

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      (S) Records, reports, opinions, information, and statements required to be kept

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confidential by federal law or regulation or state law, or rule of court.

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      (T) Judicial bodies are included in the definition only in respect to their administrative

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function provided that records kept pursuant to the provisions of chapter 16 of title 8 are exempt

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from the operation of this chapter.

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      (U) Library records which by themselves or when examined with other public records,

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would reveal the identity of the library user requesting, checking out, or using any library

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materials.

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      (V) Printouts from TELE -- TEXT devices used by people who are deaf or hard of

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hearing or speech impaired.

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      (W) All records received by the insurance division of the department of business

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regulation from other states, either directly or through the National Association of Insurance

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Commissioners, if those records are accorded confidential treatment in that state. Nothing

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contained in this title or any other provision of law shall prevent or be construed as prohibiting

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the commissioner of insurance from disclosing otherwise confidential information to the

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insurance department of this or any other state or country, at any time, so long as the agency or

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office receiving the records agrees in writing to hold it confidential in a manner consistent with

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the laws of this state.

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      (X) Credit card account numbers in the possession of state or local government are

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confidential and shall not be deemed public records.

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      (Y) Any documentary material, answers to written interrogatories, or oral testimony

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provided under any subpoena issued under Rhode Island general law section 9-1.1-6.

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      (ii) However, any reasonably segregable portion of a public record excluded by this

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section shall be available for public inspections after the deletion of the information which is the

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basis of the exclusion, if disclosure of the segregable portion does not violate the intent of this

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section.

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      (6) "Supervisor of the regulatory body" means the chief or head of a section having

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enforcement responsibility for a particular statute or set of rules and regulations within a

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regulatory agency.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC00538

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC RECORDS - ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS

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     This act would provide that individual employment contracts of public employees would

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be deemed a public record for purposes of access to public records.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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LC00538

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