HB 1402 -- Open Records Law

Sponsor:  Goodman

This bill makes changes to the Open Records Law.  In its main
provisions, the bill:

(1)  Includes the curators of the University of Missouri in the
definition of "public governmental body";

(2)  Includes bi-state development agencies in the definition of
"quasi-public governmental body";

(3)  Requires that a journal or minutes of closed meetings be
taken and retained by public governmental bodies;

(4)  Authorizes public governmental bodies to close meetings,
records, and votes relating to:

(a)  Imminent causes of action or litigation involving the public
governmental body.  Currently, public governmental bodies are
authorized to close meetings, records, and votes relating to all
causes of action;

(b)  Operational guidelines and policies adopted and maintained
by public agencies responsible for law enforcement and public
safety for use in responding to or preventing terrorist
incidents, when the agencies state in writing that disclosure
would impair the agencies' protection duties and public interest
in nondisclosure outweighs public interest in disclosure.
Information regarding expenditures and contracts made by agencies
in implementing these policies is not exempt.  This exception
sunsets on December 31, 2006;

(5)  Requires that the amount and source of private donations to
the salary of a chancellor or president of the University of
Missouri system be disclosed;

(6)  Requires that the names of the final slate of candidates for
chief executive officers of public governmental bodies be
disclosed;

(7)  Requires that all final audit reports by the auditor of a
public governmental body be considered open public records;

(8)  Allows a member of a public governmental body to record an
objection in the minutes to closing a meeting or vote.  The
objecting member then may stay for the meeting or vote, and the
record objection will be an absolute defense to any claim
pursuant to Section 610.027, RSMo, providing for actions against
public governmental bodies and their members and the imposition
of monetary penalties;

(9)  Changes the fee for furnishing copies of public records from
the actual cost of document search and duplication to 10 cents
per page for paper copies and the hourly rate of pay for clerical
staff, with the first half-hour at no charge;

(10)  Prohibits the custodian of public records that are the
subject of a civil action to enforce the laws from transferring
custody, altering, destroying, or otherwise disposing of the
records;

(11)  Changes the civil fine of up to $500 and order of payment
of the successful party's costs and reasonable attorney fees to a
civil penalty of $1,000 to $5,000 and payment of the successful
party's costs and reasonable attorney fees upon a finding of a
purposeful violation of the law by a public governmental body or
its members or a law enforcement agency;

(12)  Requires a court, upon a finding of a negligent violation
of the law by a public governmental body or its members or a law
enforcement agency, to impose a civil penalty of $25 to $1,000
and gives the court discretion to order payment of the successful
party's costs and reasonable attorney fees;

(13)  Provides that, in determining the amount of the penalty for
either a negligent or purposeful violation of the law by a public
governmental body or its members or a law enforcement agency, the
court must consider the size of the jurisdiction, the seriousness
of the offense, and whether the public governmental body or its
members has previously violated the laws;

(14)  Requires a public governmental body, when developing an
electronic record-keeping system, to do so in a common format
that is not an impediment to public access; and

(15)  Deletes the provision prohibiting law enforcement agencies
from releasing accident or incident reports for 60 days to any
person who is not an interested party.

The bill has a sunset date of December 31, 2006, for Section
610.021(18), which excludes from the Open Records Law, law
enforcement or public safety agencies' operational guidelines and
policies for responding to or preventing terrorist activities.

Missouri House of Representatives
92nd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 23, 2004 at 11:15 am