Bill Text: HI HB2303 | 2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To The Uniform Information Practices Act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-03-08 - Referred to JDC. [HB2303 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2022-HB2303-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
2303 |
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THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO THE UNIFORM INFORMATION PRACTICES ACT.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. In 1988, the legislature passed the Uniform Information Practices Act (Modified), chapter 92F, Hawaii Revised Statutes. Part II of the Uniform Information Practices Act requires state and county government agencies, including the legislature and the judiciary's administrative offices, to allow public access to government records upon request, unless the records qualify for one of five exceptions codified in section 92F-13, Hawaii Revised Statutes.
The legislature finds that beginning in 1989, the office of information practices recognized that public disclosure of pre-decisional and deliberative memoranda and correspondence transmitted within or between government agencies, such as staff recommendations, notes, drafts, and internal memoranda exchanging ideas, opinions, and editorial judgments before a decision or policy is finalized and made public, could impede the candid and free exchange of ideas and opinions within an agency for fear of being subject to public ridicule or criticism and could thus frustrate agencies' decision-making function. The legislature further finds that the protection of internal decision-making materials allows agencies to freely and candidly share views internally and thus reach sound and fair decisions, which is consistent with the legislature's original intent in passing the Uniform Information Practices Act. Moreover, the disclosure of proposed policies or tentative decisions before they have been finally formulated or adopted could lead to public confusion and unnecessary divisiveness based on reasons, rationales, or proposals that were not ultimately adopted or expressly incorporated by reference into the final document.
However, on December 21, 2018, a majority of three justices of the Hawaii supreme court held in Peer News LLC v. City and County of Honolulu, 143 Hawaii 472 (2018), that the legislature never intended for these pre-decisional and deliberative records to be withheld from public access under the Uniform Information Practices Act exception in section 92F-13(3), Hawaii Revised Statutes.
The legislature also finds that the dissenting opinion by two justices of the Hawaii supreme court in Peer News LLC more accurately assessed the legislature's intent when it established the Uniform Information Practices Act. The dissent concluded that the plain language and legislative history underlying chapter 92F, Hawaii Revised Statutes, and the legislature's actions prior and subsequent to the enactment of the Uniform Information Practices Act did not indicate the legislature's intent to omit the deliberative process privilege.
The legislature further intends for government records to be disclosed when the public interest in disclosure outweighs the potential impairment to an agency's ability to reach sound and fair decisions. Consequently, in applying the deliberative process privilege, the courts and the office of information practices must balance the interests of the public and government agencies.
The purpose of this Act is to clarify the legislature's intent regarding internal deliberative and pre-decisional materials of government agencies.
SECTION 2. Section 92F-13, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
"§92F-13 Government records; exceptions to general rule. This part shall not require disclosure of:
(1) Government records [which,] that,
if disclosed, would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy;
(2) Government records pertaining to the prosecution or defense of any judicial or quasi-judicial action to which the State or any county is or may be a party, to the extent that such records would not be discoverable;
(3) Government records that, by their nature, must be confidential in order for the government to avoid the frustration of a legitimate government function;
(4) Government records [which,] that,
pursuant to state or federal law, including an order of any state or
federal court, are protected from disclosure; [and]
(5) Drafts, internal memoranda and correspondence, and other deliberative and pre-decisional materials that are a direct part of an agency's internal decision-making process, disclosure of which would impair the agency's ability to make sound and fair decisions, but only to the extent that such impairment outweighs the public interest in disclosure; and
[(5)] (6) Inchoate
and draft working papers of legislative committees including budget worksheets
and unfiled committee reports; work product; records or transcripts of an
investigating committee of the legislature [which] that are closed
by rules adopted pursuant to section 21-4; and the personal files of
members of the legislature."
SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2112.
Report Title:
Uniform Information Practices Act; Exceptions to Disclosure; Deliberative and Pre-decisional Materials
Description:
Clarifies the legislature's intent regarding internal deliberative and pre-decisional materials of government agencies. Specifies that certain deliberative and pre-decisional materials that are a direct part of a government agency's internal decision-making process are not subject to disclosure if the disclosure of such materials would impair the agency's ability to make sound and fair decisions, but only to the extent that the impairment outweighs public interest in disclosure. Effective 7/1/2112. (HD1)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
