[nfbmi-talk] FW: changes to mich foia signed

[Terry D. Eagle]

This new law opens the door to stop the over-charging of information to
blind citizens by BS4BP.


-----Original Message-----
From: joe harcz Comcast [mailto:joeharcz at comcast.net] 
Changes to Michigan's FOIA drops cost of public records Public records will
become cheaper and easier to access under changes to Michigan's Freedom of
Information

Act. Government agencies will not be allowed to charge more than 10 cents
per page for copies of public records; they can face increased fines for
delaying

responses, and people seeking the records now can sue if they consider the
fees to be exorbitant. Dirk Milliman of the Michigan Press Association said

the changes have been years in the making and involved compromise, but,
overall, the new law increases transparency and access to public records.
"We are

pleased with the end result as it addresses the two most major concerns
expressed by our members with regard to FOIA in Michigan: costs and delays,"
he

said. The changes take effect July 1. Gov. Rick Snyder signed them into law
last week, saying in a statement that the changes remind government workers

that they "are working on behalf of our residents, who should not be
discouraged from learning about how that government is serving them. The law
allows

requesters who believe they are being overcharged for records to sue and ask
a court to lower the fee. If the court concludes the public body arbitrarily

and capriciously charged an unreasonable fee, the court must assess $1,000
in punitive damages. The new law also increases punitive damages from $500
to

$2,000 on public bodies that arbitrarily and capriciously break the law by
refusing or delaying the release of public records. It also requires courts

to fine public bodies $2,500 to $7,500 for willfully and intentionally
failing to follow the law. The fines are paid to the state. Michigan first
passed

its Freedom of Information Act in 1976, in the wake of the Watergate
scandals in Washington. Many states and the federal government sought to
increase

access to public records then as a way to prevent future abuses. Newspapers
and other news media outlets routinely use the FOIA to access public records

on government contracting, hiring, spending and other matters. The Detroit
Free Press used the law to access records from the administration of former

Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick as part of the text messages scandal. But the
rights of access created under the law apply to all citizens, not just news

media outlets. Residents acting on their own have used FOIA requests to
uncover questionable dealings across the state. Another change in the law
requires

governments to provide the records electronically instead of on paper if the
requester seeks them in that format. It includes an exemption if local
government

lacks the technology to provide the records electronically. If a government
misses a deadline for responding to a request, it must discount the fees
charged

by 5% for each day the response is late. The maximum discount is 50%.
Contact John Wisely: 313-222-6825 or jwisely at freepress.com. House Bill No.
4001