Maine Freedom of Access Act
The Maine Freedom of Access Act is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels in Maine. The Freedom of Access Act also legislates the methods by which public meetings are conducted.
The Maine Open Meeting Law legislates the methods by which open meetings are conducted.
To learn more about how to make a public records request in this state, please see: Maine FOIA procedures
Recent news
- See also: Maine transparency headlines
Transparency blocking
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Litigation
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Legislation
- Bill would stop public disclosure of state workers' salaries 2009-06-04 16:53:53
- Public Salaries Website Causes Privacy Dispute 2009-06-04 16:51:20
- Bill hides names from list of state worker salaries 2009-06-04 16:48:45
More FOIA legislation news from across the country.
Sunshine Guardians
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Other Sunshine Guardians from across the country.
Relevant legal cases
- See also: Court cases with an impact on state FOIA
Here is a list of lawsuits in Maine. For more information go the page or go to Maine sunshine lawsuits.
(The cases are listed alphabetically. To order them by year please click the icon to the right of the Year heading)
| Lawsuit | Year |
|---|---|
| Town of Burlington v. Hospital Administrative District No. 1 | 2001 |
Proposed changes
2011
Here is a list of transparency legislation for Maine in 2011. This list contains a random collection of 15 bills from the state. For the full list please see Maine transparency legislation.
| Rating | Bill | Current Status | Progress | Information |
 | Senate Paper 456 and Legislative Document 1465 | Current Status: (Referred to Judiciary Committee) | 
|
SP 456 and LD 14651 was introduced to the House by Senator Richard Rosen which would require each agency to train one staff member as a "Public Access Officer" charged with helping provide public access to their agency. The bill would also modify time lengths for requests, notifications for certain request problems such as fees and technological issues. It would also provide the courts with the ability to issue an injunction if an agency was found to be in violation of open meetings or open records laws.[1] |
2010
Here are a list of 30 random bills from Maine from 2010. For a full list, please see Maine transparency legislation.
|
2009
- Main article: Proposed reforms in state sunshine laws, 2009 LA-ND
LD 1353 [1] "An Act Regarding Salary Information for Public Employees" sponsored by Senator Lisa Marraché seeks to forbid the release of salary information by name, and allow it only by position. [2]
Maine's transparency report card
A 2008 study, BGA - Alper Integrity Index, conducted by the Better Government Association and sponsored by Alper Services, ranked Maine #33 in the nation with an overall percentage of 48.80%. [3]
A 2007 study, Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, conducted by BGA and the NFOIC, gave Maine 41 points out of a possible 100, a letter grade of "F", and a ranking of 32 out of the 50 states.[4]
A 2002 study, Freedom of Information in the USA, conducted by IRE and BGA, ranked Maine's law as the 29th worst in the country, giving it a letter grade of "D+".[5]
Features of the law
Compare States: Sunshine variations: Click on the heading to compare your state's law to other state's transparency laws.
Declared legal intention
The declared legal intention states, "The Legislature finds and declares that public proceedings exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of the Legislature that their actions be taken openly and that the records of their actions be open to public inspection and their deliberations be conducted openly."[6]
What records are covered?
The Maine Freedom of Access Act defines public records as:"any written, printed or graphic matter or any mechanical or electronic data compilation from which information can be obtained, directly or after translation into a form susceptible of visual or aural comprehension, that is in the possession or custody of an agency or public official of this State or any of its political subdivisions, or is in the possession or custody of an association, the membership of which is composed exclusively of one or more of any of these entities, and has been received or prepared for use in connection with the transaction of public or governmental business or contains information relating to the transaction of public or governmental business."[7]
Exemptions
Exceptions to this include:
- Records identified as confidential by statute (402-3-1).
- Legislative papers and reports until the legislature deems them fit to circulate (402-3-C).
- Bargaining information (402-3-D).
- Memorandum and office papers for State universities and colleges (402-3-E).
- Medical records (402-3-H).
- Juvenile records (402-3-J).
- Security information that protects individuals, infrastructure and telecommunications networks (402-3-L and M).
- Social Security numbers and personal contact information (402-3-N and O).
Deliberative process
What agencies are covered?
The Maine statute includes all government bodies at both the state and local levels. [9]
Legislature
The expansive definition of public body found within the Maine Freedom of Access Act found at Maine Statute 1-402 includes the state legislature. However, the act does have exemptions for the working papers of legislatures under a Deliberative process exemption.
Privatized governmental agencies
Private agencies which were created by a public entity and are controlled or managed by public entities are considered public bodies and fall under the scope of the Maine Freedom of Access Act. In addition, Town of Burlington v. Hospital Administrative District No. 1 established a test incorporating four factors including funding, public function, whether or not the entity was created by a public body and if the entity is controlled by a public body. The test is a loose test which does not require any single factor to be met but considers the totality of factors. [10]
Public universities
Status: Presumed Open Popular Exemptions Research Donors Examinations Course Materials
The definition of public body presumably includes public universities within the state.
Who may request records?
Anyone may request public records in Maine. "[E]very person has the right to inspect and copy any public record." [11]
Must a purpose be stated?
The law does not require a statement of purpose.
How can records be used?
The law does not restrict the use of public records.
Time allowed for response
- 5 days
The law does not specify a time limit with regard to positive request responses. However, a rejection must occur within 5 business days of the receipt of the request. [12]
Fees for records
Copy costs:
The Maine FAA allows for the charging of fees for both copying and duplication. Any costs estimated over $100 must be paid in advance. Fees may be waived if the request is made on behalf of the public good or if the person requesting lacks the money to pay the fees. Agencies may not charge fees to inspect public records. [13]
Search fees:
Agencies may charge fees to cover the staff time involved in the search not to exceed $10 an hour and only after the first hour of searching. Agencies may also charge fees for translating documents but cannot charge fees for just inspection.[14]
Records commissions and ombudsmen:
The Right to Know Advisory Committee was established by the Maine Freedom of Access Act in order to better assist the state in developing public records policy and training as well as settling disputes concerning questions of law. To read more, please see our page entitled: Maine Right To Know Advisory Committee.
Role of the Attorney General
Although the State Attorney General may enforce the Act, prosecution are virtually unheard of.
Open meetings
"Except as otherwise provided by statute or by section 405, all public proceedings shall be open to the public, any person shall be permitted to attend any public proceeding and any record or minutes of such proceedings that is required by law shall be made promptly and shall be open to public inspection."[15]
Notable requests
See also
- Maine Right To Know Advisory Committee
- Maine FOIA procedures
- Maine transparency headlines
- Maine transparency advocates
- Maine transparency legislation
- Private agency, public dollars-Maine
- Maine Open Meeting Law
External links
References
- ↑ Text & Status of LD 1353
- ↑ Kennebec Journal, "Bill hides names from list of state worker salaries", April 10, 2009
- ↑ 2008 BGA-Alper Integrity Index
- ↑ States Failing FOI Responsiveness, National Freedom of Information Coalition, October 2007
- ↑ Freedom of Information in the USA, 2002
- ↑ Maine Revised Statutes 401. Declaration of public policy
- ↑ ME Rev. Stat. 1.13.402
- ↑ Maine Statute 1-402
- ↑ Maine Statute 1-402
- ↑ Private agency, public dollars-Maine
- ↑ Maine Revised Statutes, 408(1)
- ↑ Maine Statute 1-409-1
- ↑ Maine Statute 1-408-5
- ↑ Maine Statute 1-408-5
- ↑ Maine Revised Statutes 403. Meetings to be open to public
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