S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9738
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 5, 2018
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. BUCHWALD -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Governmental Operations
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  public  officers law, in relation to publishing
   records of public interest by agencies and the state legislature
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1. Section 84 of the public officers law, as added by chapter
 933 of the laws of 1977, is amended to read as follows:
   § 84. Legislative declaration. The legislature  hereby  finds  that  a
 free society is maintained when government is responsive and responsible
 to the public, and when the public is aware of governmental actions. The
 more  open  a  government  is with its citizenry, the greater the under-
 standing and participation of the public in government.
   As state and local government services increase  and  public  problems
 become more sophisticated and complex and therefore harder to solve, and
 with  the  resultant increase in revenues and expenditures, it is incum-
 bent upon the state and its localities to extend  public  accountability
 wherever and whenever feasible.
   The people's right to know the process of governmental decision-making
 and  to review the documents and statistics leading to determinations is
 basic to our society. Access to such information should not be  thwarted
 by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.
   SINCE  THE  FREEDOM  OF INFORMATION LAW WAS FIRST ADOPTED, ADVANCES IN
 TECHNOLOGY HAVE ENHANCED THE  ABILITY  TO  GAIN  ACCESS  TO  AND  WIDELY
 DISSEMINATE PUBLIC INFORMATION.  ACCORDINGLY, THE LEGISLATURE FINDS THAT
 GOVERNMENT  AGENCIES,  TO THE EXTENT PRACTICABLE, SHOULD PUBLISH RECORDS
 PROACTIVELY ON THE INTERNET THAT ARE OF PUBLIC  INTEREST  AND  AVAILABLE
 UNDER THIS ARTICLE.
   The  legislature  therefore  declares  that government is the public's
 business and that the public, individually and collectively and  repres-
 ented  by  a free press, should have access to the records of government
 in accordance with the provisions of this article.
   § 2. Section 90 of the public officers law is renumbered section  90-a
 and a new section 90 is added to read as follows:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
              

                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD01914-03-8

 A. 9738                             2
 
   §  90.  RECORDS  OF  PUBLIC  INTEREST. 1. EACH AGENCY AND HOUSE OF THE
 STATE LEGISLATURE SHALL PUBLISH, ON ITS INTERNET WEBSITE, TO THE  EXTENT
 PRACTICABLE,  RECORDS  OR  PORTIONS OF RECORDS THAT ARE AVAILABLE TO THE
 PUBLIC PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ARTICLE, AND WHICH, IN CONSID-
 ERATION  OF  THEIR  NATURE, CONTENT OR SUBJECT MATTER, ARE DETERMINED BY
 THE AGENCY TO BE OF SUBSTANTIAL INTEREST TO THE PUBLIC. ANY SUCH RECORDS
 MAY BE REMOVED FROM THE INTERNET WEBSITE WHEN THE AGENCY OR HOUSE OF THE
 STATE LEGISLATURE DETERMINES THAT THEY  ARE  NO  LONGER  OF  SUBSTANTIAL
 INTEREST  TO THE PUBLIC. ANY SUCH RECORDS MAY BE REMOVED FROM THE INTER-
 NET WEBSITE WHEN THEY HAVE REACHED THE  END  OF  THEIR  LEGAL  RETENTION
 PERIOD.  GUIDANCE ON CREATING RECORDS IN ACCESSIBLE FORMATS AND ENSURING
 THEIR CONTINUING ACCESSIBILITY SHALL BE AVAILABLE FROM  THE  OFFICE  FOR
 TECHNOLOGY AND THE STATE ARCHIVES.
   2.  THE  PROVISIONS OF SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION SHALL NOT APPLY
 TO RECORDS OR PORTIONS OF RECORDS THE DISCLOSURE OF WHICH WOULD  CONSTI-
 TUTE  AN  UNWARRANTED  INVASION  OF  PERSONAL PRIVACY IN ACCORDANCE WITH
 SUBDIVISION TWO OF SECTION EIGHTY-NINE OF THIS ARTICLE.
   3. THE COMMITTEE ON OPEN GOVERNMENT SHALL  PROMULGATE  REGULATIONS  TO
 EFFECTUATE THIS SECTION.
   4.  NOTHING  IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED AS TO LIMIT OR ABRIDGE
 THE POWER OF AN AGENCY OR HOUSE OF  THE  STATE  LEGISLATURE  TO  PUBLISH
 RECORDS  ON  ITS  INTERNET WEBSITE THAT ARE SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF
 THIS ARTICLE PRIOR TO A WRITTEN REQUEST OR PRIOR TO A FREQUENT REQUEST.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.