Authorizes and directs the committee on open government to study proactive disclosure as a means of increasing transparency and access to government information.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2344
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 24, 2019
___________
Introduced by Sen. KAVANAGH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
ment Operations
AN ACT authorizing and directing the committee on open government to
study proactive disclosure as a means of increasing transparency and
access to government information
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature finds that the
2 current freedom of information law, enacted in 1977, has served as a
3 critical vehicle under which the public has gained access to records of
4 state and local governmental entities. The legislature further finds
5 that the freedom of information law places the burden on the individual
6 to request information from an agency, but that the use of current
7 information technology, combined with a commitment to proactive disclo-
8 sure, has the potential to provide information to the public to an even
9 greater degree than does the current law.
10 § 2. The New York state committee on open government is hereby author-
11 ized and directed to: (a) study the feasibility of requiring agencies,
12 as defined in subdivision 3 of section 86 of the public officers law, to
13 proactively disclose documents that are available under article 6 of the
14 public officers law; (b) make specific findings and legislative recom-
15 mendations relating to mandatory proactive disclosure by agencies; (c)
16 estimate the costs or savings of proactive disclosure; and (d) report
17 its findings to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and
18 the speaker of the assembly no later than January 31, 2022.
19 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01291-01-9
