Oregon House passes public records reform bill

The Oregon House on Monday unanimously passed Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum’s public record reform legislation, Senate Bill 481. The bill will now move to the governor’s desk.

“When it comes to public records requests, Oregonians are entitled to both transparency and timeliness. I am proud to have spearheaded the most significant reform to our public records law in over 40 years,” Rosenblum said.

“When the governor signs this bill into law, for the first time ever there will be deadlines by which records requests must be acknowledged and records turned over by public agencies–or an explanation must be given for any delay. My office will be charged with cataloguing all exemptions that are spread out throughout the Oregon statutes. I’d like to thank all of our legislative sponsors for their support championing these important changes.”

Under SB 481:

· Public bodies will be required to acknowledge receipt of public records requests within five business days, and will then have no more than 10 business days from acknowledgment to either to fully respond to the request or to provide a written statement explaining when the request will be fulfilled.

· The Attorney General’s office will be tasked with cataloguing all 500-plus public record exemptions spread throughout the Oregon statutes.

Several other related bills are still under consideration. One, SB 106, introduced by Governor Brown, would create a public records advocate to educate and facilitate resolutions of requests. Another, HB 2101, introduced by Representative Huffman, would create a new committee to focus on addressing exemptions and would require transparency impact statements.

Senate Bill 481 is the result of the work by the Attorney General’s Public Records Law Reform Task Force . The task force was formed in September 2015 as a way to promote greater transparency in government. Its purpose is to review and recommend specific improvements to Oregon’s public records laws.

—

News release from Oregon House Republican Office:

Salem, Ore. – The Oregon House of Representatives today approved SB 481, legislation establishing deadlines for public agencies to meet when handling public records requests. Proponents of the bipartisan legislation, which was a product of Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum’s Public Records Task Force, touted the bill as a positive step forward in an ongoing effort to modernize Oregon’s public records laws.

“Oregon’s public records laws are antiquated and in serious need of a tune up,” said Rep. John Huffman (R-The Dalles), who served on the task force that developed the bill and has helped shepherd it through the legislative process. “By establishing statutory deadlines for government agencies to respond to records requests, we are taking a meaningful step forward in our efforts to promote access to public documents. While SB 481 is by no means a be-all-end-all reform bill, it is a good bill, and hopefully the first of several public records bills adopted this session.”

SB 481 requires government agencies to acknowledge records requests within five business days, and requires the records retrieval to be completed within 10 business days after the date of acknowledgement.

The legislation allows agencies to exceed the statutory deadlines under certain circumstances, but requires the agency to issue the requester a written explanation for the delay along with an estimated date of completion.

SB 481 also requires the Oregon Department of Justice to establish and maintain a public list of Oregon’s 550-plus public records exemptions.

In addition to SB 481, lawmakers are also considering SB 106, which would establish a public records advocate position within state government, as well as HB 2101, which would require lawmakers to regularly review and authorize Oregon’s long list of public records exemptions.

“I am hopeful that we can find a way to advance SB 106 and HB 2101 before the end of the session,” concluded Rep. Huffman. “Public access to government records is essential to maintaining public trust. It’s long past to bring our transparency laws into the 21st Century.”

SB 481 passed the House by a vote of 52-0. The bill now heads to Governor Brown’s desk, where it is expected to be signed into law.