Nebraska Public Records Law
From Sunshine Review
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The Nebraska Public Records Law is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels in Nebraska. Sections 84-712 - 84-712.09 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes define the law.
The Nebraska Open Meetings Act legislates the methods by which public meetings are conducted. Sections 84-1407 to 84-1414 of the Nebraska Revised Statutes define the law.
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[edit] Legislation
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[edit] Sunshine Guardians
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[edit] Nebraska's transparency report card
A 2008 study, BGA - Alper Integrity Index, conducted by the Better Government Association and sponsored by Alper Services, ranked Nebraska #6 in the nation with an overall percentage of 60.80%. [1]
A 2007 study, Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, conducted by BGA and the NFOIC, gave Nebraska 87 points out of a possible 100, a letter grade of "B", and a ranking of 1 out of the 50 states.[2]
A 2002 study, Freedom of Information in the USA, conducted by IRE and BGA, ranked Nebraska's law as the best in the country, giving it a letter grade of "B".[3]
[edit] Features of the law
Nebraska law guarantees it's citizens the right to examine documents and other records that the government produces in the course of carrying out public duties.
[edit] What records are covered?
Public records include all documents, no matter the form, belonging to any government agency.[4]
Exceptions to the law include but are not limited to:
- Personal information of students or prospective students
- Medical records
- Trade secrets
- Documents that would fall under attorney-client privilege, where a public body acts as the client
- Law enforcement investigations
- Appraisal information for potential sale or purchase of public lands
- Personal information of employees other than salaries and office contact information
- Security information
- Account information at public utilities offices
- Library records
- "Correspondence, memoranda, and records of telephone calls related to the performance of duties by a member of the Legislature" [5]
- Archaeological or historical locations information
- Donor information for museum and university collections
- Job application materials of individuals who were not selected for the position
- records of the Public Employee's Retirement Board
- "Social security numbers; credit card, charge card, or debit card numbers and expiration dates; and financial account numbers supplied to state and local governments by citizens" [6]
However, Nebraska law requires departments to separate exempt from non-exempt material and disclose strictly the non-exempt material. [7]
[edit] What agencies are covered?
The Nebraska law includes all branches of government at both the state and local level.[8]
[edit] Who may request records?
Any citizen of the state, or any person interested in the inner workings of government may request public records in Nebraska. "[A]ll citizens of this state, and all other persons interested in the examination of the public records... are hereby fully empowered and authorized to examine the same". [9]
[edit] Must a purpose be stated?
Nebraska law does not require a statement of purpose.
[edit] How can records be used?
Nebraska law place no restrictions on the use of records.
[edit] Time allowed for response
- See also: Request response times by state.
Nebraska law allows for four business days for the completion of records requests. However, it does permit extensions if the department requesting the extension submits a written statement of justification and declaration of the soonest the records can be made available to the person making the request. [10]
[edit] Fees for records
Nebraska law only permits fees charged for the actual material cost of duplication including the medium and fees for the maintenance of equipment. Nebraska cannot charge for the labor time as it would run counter to the declared intent of the passage which states that record access shall be free of charge. [11] However, a waiver does exist for any member of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.[12]
[edit] Open meetings
Nebraska law declares "that the formation of public policy is public business and may not be conducted in secret. Every meeting of a public body shall be open to the public in order that citizens may exercise their democratic privilege of attending and speaking at meetings of public bodies".[13]
[edit] Proposed changes
[edit] Relevant legal cases
- See also: Court cases with an impact on state FOIA
Here is a list of lawsuits in Nebraska. For more information go the page or go to Nebraska 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 |
|---|---|
| Grein v. Board of Education | 1984 |
| State ex rel. Upper Republican Natural Resources District v. District Judges of the District Court for Chase County | 2007 |
[edit] Notable requests
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Nebraska Revised Statutes See sections 84-712 to 84-712.09 for the Public Records law, and sections 84-1407 to 84-1414 for the Open Meetings law.
- Open Government Guide to Nebraska
- Past articles on Nebraska
[edit] References
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