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REVISION OF FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
HJ501
Author: Del. Chip Woodrum, D-Roanoke
Type: FOIA study
Details: Extends life of special 7-member study commission for a second
year, to consider proposals for a "Sunshine Office," FOIA rules for
quasi-public entities, college foundations and the SCC, possible
collapsing of various agency-specific FOIA exemptions into narrowly
written, comprehensive exemptions.
Status: Approved by House 99-1 (Voting no: Davis, R-Yorktown); approved
unanimously by Senate.
HB1985
Author: Del. Chip Woodrum, D-Roanoke
Type: Omnibus FOIA bill
Details: Creates a tighter, restructured Freedom of Information Act,
following an eight-month study by a special 7-member legislative
subcommittee; strengthens definitions and rules for closed-door
meetings, cuts back current exceptions from 97 to 95, limits exemptions
for working-papers and legal matters; puts burden on government when
closing a meeting or withholding a record;
increases penalties for violators, etc.; amended to allow
confidentiality for official documents prepared for personal or
deliberate use by governor's cabinet and other senior state officials
Status: Approved unanimously (after the lt. governor cast a tie-breaking
vote in the Senate to limit the governor's working-paper exemption
to
cabinet members only; all 19 Democrats and Sen. William Mims, R-Loudoun,
supported the change). Signed by governor.
SB1023
Author: Sen. William Bolling, R-Hanover
Type: Omnibus FOIA bill
Details: As uanimously passed, identical to HB 1985
Status: see HB 1985
HB2327
Author: Del. Roger McClure, R-Centreville
Type: FOIA training; misc.
Details: Office of the Attorney General designated as responsible agency
to compile annual FOIA guidelines for public bodies and provide FOIA
training every two years. Every executive official of a public body
would undergo two hours of continuing education every two years. Fines
for FOIA violators would range from $100 t0 $1,000 (the FOIA study
committee recommends a maximum $2,500 fine for repeat offenders).
Losing plaintiffs in FOIA lawsuits could be required to pay a public
body's court costs.
Status: carried over by House General Laws Committee for further study
by the FOIA interim subcommittee; McClure cast the only dissenting
vote
HB1659
Author: Del. Bob Marshall, R-Loudoun
Type: College foundations/FOIA
Details: Proposes extending FOIA rules to cover private foundations
at
Virginia's public colleges and universities. (Note: a similar proposal
by the Virginia Press Association has been carried over for 1999 study
by the FOIA legislative study commission)
Status: Bottled up in committee pending '99 commission study
HB2288
Author: Del. Bob Marshall, R-Loudoun
Type: College foundations/FOIA
Details: Proposes extending FOIA rules to cover private foundations
at
Virginia's public colleges and universities; similar to HB1659
Status: Bottled up in committee pending '99 commission study
New (1), expanded (4) FOIA exemptions:
OTHER LEGISLATION OF INTEREST:
HB1043
Author: Tom Jackson, D-Carroll/Grayson
Type: Internet access
Subject: Requires local libraries and school systems to adopt Internet-use
policies for patrons, students and employees; stipulates that
policies must include ways to block viewing of illegal on-line material;
heads off threatened uniform rules for statewide regulation
Status: Approved unanimously by Senate; passed 97-2 by House (dissenting:
Davis, Woodrum); signed by governor
HB2101
Author: Del. Bob Purkey, R-Virginia Beach
Type: Disclosure rules for legislators' expense accounts
Details: As recommended by a citizens' study commission that urges
better pay for General Assembly members, the measure would require
annual disclosure of detailed office-expense reports.
Status: Died in committee (as did recommended proposals for legislators'
pay increases)
HB2111
Author: Del. Lee Ware, R-Powhatan
Type: Minutes for public meetings
Details: Permits gavel-to-gavel tape recordings in lieu of written
minutes for county boards of supervisors holding pre-announced, public
meetings at which no official action is taken; requires that tapes
be retained and available for public inspection in accordance with FOIA
and the Virginia Public Records Act
Status: Approved unanimously by House; passed 39-1 in Senate (dissenting:
Quayle); signed by governor
HB2240
Author: Del. Bud Phillips, D-Castlewood
Type: On-line court records
Details: Envisions free public access by July 1, 2000, of court records
currently available only via long-distance phone calls through the
Supreme Court's so-called LOPAS system
Status: Withdrawn by Phillips (note: requested funding was omitted
from budget, also)
SJR361
Author: Sen. Steve Newman, R-Lynchburg
Type: Net.Work Virginia
Details: One-year study of feasibility of connecting the Capitol and
General Assembly building to the state's videoconferencing system,
similar to set-ups in Kentucky, Nevada, Wisconsin and Utah
Status: Passed by Senate 39-1 (dissenting: Barry)
SJR405
Author: Sen. Randy Forbes, R-Cheasapeake
Type: Televised General Assembly sessions
Details: Encourages clerks to arrange C-SPAN-type cablecasts or public
TV coverage of future General Assembly sessions, similar to
set-ups in
California, Pennsylvania, Minnesota and Alaska
Status: Passed by Senate; killed in House
SJR513
Author: Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth
Type: Internet regulation
Subject: Urges Internet businesses to regulate themselves; House substitute
spells out what that self-regulation could/should look like.
Status: Passed by Senate; killed in House
SB806
Author: Sen. Ed Schrock, R-Virginia Beach
Type: FOIA notice for public meetings
Details: Proposed by the Joint Commission on Science and Technology.
Permits use of e-mail notice by public agencies, thus ending postal
service bias implicit in current law; notice requesters will be given the
choice of type of notice to be received
Status: Approved unanimously; ; signed by governor
SB808
Author: Sen. Ed Schrock, R-Virginia Beach
TyPnology office
Details: Designates new secretary of technology as state's Chief
Information Officer, responsible for formulating and directing state
policy for information technology; requires annual reports to Joint
Commission on Technology and Science on use of technology to increase
citizen convenience and public access to state government; creates
20-
to 26-member Council on Technology Services and a 12-citizen Advisory
Board; oversees Department of Information Technology; creates new
Department of Technology Planning and abolishes Council on Information
Management.
Status: Approved unanimously; signed by governor
SB1026
Author: Sen. Steve Newman, R-Lynchburg
Type: 15-month videoconferencing test
Details: Allows experimental use of videoconferencing by the
legislature, community colleges and selected state agencies. Proposed
by
the Joint Commission on Science and Technology. Requires 7-day prior
notice, agenda materials and public access at each remote site in
Virginia; amended by House at Delegate Richard Cranwell's request to
prohibit any action violating FOIA; previously it prohibited actions counter
to "spirit or letter" of FOIA. (A similar bill was vetoed by Gov. Gilmore
in 1998.)
Status: Approved unanimously by Senate; passed by House 80-18; signed
by governor
SB1170
Author: Sen. Ken Stolle, R-Virginia Beach
Type: Internet criminal records
Details: Sought to place all criminal records on-line by
July 1, 2001. As amended, only felonies woul have been posted. Substitute
bill allowed State Police to set high access fees, contrary to
FOIA rules.
Status: Passed by Senate, 21-20; killed in House Courts of Justice
Committee
SB1186
Author: Sen. John Chichester
Type: On-line records
Details: Among other things, requires the Department of Medical Assistance
Services to post all frequently requested data of Virginia's health-care
providers on the Internet (this involves a fight between hospitals and
the state's Medicaid agency)
Status: Differing versions passed by Senate 37-3; House 67-30; House
version accepted; governor's amendments approved, striking Internet section
(and everything else in the bill, except for required reporting of progress
in "facilitating" communication
SB1216
Author: Sen. Randy Forbes
Type: Nonconfidential juvenile records
Details: Permits older juveniles to be tried as adults if charged with
a criminal offense involving a firearm, assault or assault and battery
Status: Approved by Senate; amended by House to cover felonies only |
