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2016 SESSION

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SB 494 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; record exclusions, rule of redaction, etc.

Introduced by: Scott A. Surovell | all patrons    ...    notes | add to my profiles

SUMMARY AS PASSED SENATE: (all summaries)

Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); record exclusions; rule of redaction; no weight accorded to public body's determination. Reverses the holding of the Virginia Supreme Court in the case of Department of Corrections v. Surovell, by setting out the general rule of redaction, which provides that no provision of FOIA is intended, nor shall it be construed or applied, to authorize a public body to withhold a public record in its entirety on the grounds that some portion of the public record is excluded from disclosure by FOIA or by any other provision of law. Further, the bill states that a public record may be withheld from disclosure in its entirety only to the extent that an exclusion from disclosure under FOIA or other provision of law applies to the entire content of the public record. Otherwise, only those portions of the public record containing information subject to an exclusion under FOIA or other provision of law may be withheld, and all portions of the public record that are not so excluded shall be disclosed. The bill defines the term "information" and provides that it is declaratory of the law as is it existed prior to the September 17, 2015, decision of the Supreme Court of Virginia in the case of the Department of Corrections v. Surovell. The bill also reverses that part of the holding of the Virginia Supreme Court in the case of Department of Corrections v. Surovell by providing that in a FOIA enforcement action, no court shall be required to accord any weight to the determination of a public body as to whether an exclusion applies. The bill contains technical amendments. This bill is identical to HB 817.


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