Permits assessment of certain fees and costs upon wrongful denial of access to records under the freedom of information law when either the person has substantially prevailed and the agency had no such reasonable basis for denying access, or if the agency failed to respond within the statutory time, or when the record is substantially disclosed and the agency lacked a reasonable basis in law for withholding the record.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
7835
IN SENATE
February 25, 2020
___________
Introduced by Sen. JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Govern-
ment Operations
AN ACT to amend the public officers law, in relation to permitting
assessment of certain fees and costs upon wrongful denial of access to
records under the freedom of information law
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 89 of the public
2 officers law, as amended by chapter 453 of the laws of 2017, is amended
3 to read as follows:
4 (c) The court in such a proceeding[: (i)] may assess, against such
5 agency involved, reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs
6 reasonably incurred by such person in any case under the provisions of
7 this [section in which] article in which:
8 (i) such person has substantially prevailed[,] and [when] the court
9 finds that such agency had no such reasonable basis for denying access;
10 or
11 (ii) the agency failed to respond to a request or appeal within the
12 statutory time; [and (ii) shall assess, against such agency involved,
13 reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs reasonably
14 incurred by such person in any case under the provisions of this section
15 in which such person has substantially prevailed] or
16 (iii) the record is substantially disclosed following the initiation
17 of such proceeding but prior to a judicial determination and the court
18 finds that the agency [had no] lacked a reasonable basis in law for
19 [denying access] withholding the record.
20 Nothing contained herein shall be construed to abridge or deny any
21 right or remedy available under article eighty-six of the civil practice
22 law and rules.
23 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of September next
24 succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14780-01-0
