Advisory Council
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-19-03
Records held by Barnes & Noble relating to the management of pulbic university bookstores are subject to FOIA if the store is acting as the university’s agent, but not if the store is acting as an independent contractor. University may not frustrate public policy of access to records on the transaction of public business by…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-17-03
If a public body has authority to censure or reprimand one of its members, it may meet in closed session to discuss it; without such authority, however, the body cannot close a meeting to discuss someone over whom the body has no control.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-18-03
A university student organization supported wholly or principally by public funds is subject to FOIA as an independent body; the parent university is not the custodian of the organization’s records. It is recommended that a FOIA request made of a public body that is not the custodian of the records sought should be forwarded on…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-16-03
School superintendent cannot redact portions of school safety audits when submitting to department of criminal justice services because another code provision, which is more specific, demands full disclosure of the report; thought the deparment of criminal justice services is the custodian of school safety audits submitted by school division superintendents, it is bound to release…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-15-03
Government employee requests under FOIA should not be treated differently from requests made by citizens; letter admonishing public employee for making a FOIA request goes against the legislative intent of FOIA; as long as records were produced in accordance with FOIA, there is no remedy under the act for the simultaneous abuse of the FOIA…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-14-03
The Onancock Business Civic Association is not a public body when it is participating in the Main Street Program, despite needing the assent of the local governing body to participate, because the association is not supported in whole or in part by public funds; local government’s consent does not create a principal-agent relationship requiring the…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-13-03
Virginia Baseball Stadium Authority is a public body subject to FOIA. A press conference attended by a quorum of a public body or committee members representing the body is a meeting under FOIA. Virginia Baseball Stadium Authority may not deny media kits to citizens who request them. Virginia Baseball Stadium Authority may not exclude members…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-12-03
City of Newport News’ failure to provide one of the four enumerated responses to a FOIA request is a violation of the act; an action for mandamus or injunction may be pursued.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-11-03
An exception to the general rule that a public body does not have to create a record that does not exist is when the requested information is for employee salaries. General recommendation that public body and requester work together to clarify requests. General advice to compare information contained in records oneself instead of relying on…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-10-03
A suicide report held by a police department is generally available as a noncriminal incident report, though personal, medical or financial information may be redacted.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-09-03
A volunteer fire department that receives roughly 90% of its funds from state and local government sources is a public body subject to FOIA.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-07-03
The Virginia State Bar’s list of attorneys licensed to practice in the Commonwealth should be disclosed under FOIA.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-08-03
A public body cannot charge a requester for the cost of compiling a requested record that had already been compiled for an earlier requester.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-06-03
A hearing to determine whether a teacher’s complaint fits the definition of grievance should be held in private session in accordance with the Education Code; FOIA does not override the requirement.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-05-03
A city’s response for a demand of records under a subpoena duces tecum is governed by rules of the Supreme Court, not FOIA, even if those records would otherwise be available under FOIA.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-03-03
when examining rules adopted by public bodies governing the placement and use of recording equipment, one must examine the rules on a case-by-case basis to determine the practical implications of their application. Construing liberally the right of the public to record meetings, rules may be imposed to prevent interference with the meeting, but not in…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-04-03
The general results of an employee survey about working conditions should be released under FOIA, although those portions of the surveys that deal with identifiable individuals may be withheld as a personnel record.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-01-03
A public body is not authorized to purchase land between an informal vote taken in properly closed meeting but before a vote on purchase taken in open session. An informal vote taken in a closed meeting is not binding. Members of a public body may individually poll each other for their position on a matter…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-02-03
Government body could not withhold personnel records pertaining to an employee subject to a disciplinary action from that employee, even if there was an active investigation in progress. Portions of the record not pertaining to that person could be redacted.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-14-02
Though a public body may require a requester to pay a deposit for a request likely to cost over $200 to fulfill, the public body is also required to refund the requester the difference of any overestimate. Whether it is reasonable for a public body to maintain records in a manner that makes it hard…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-15-02
City council may meet in closed session to discuss slate of candidates to fill a vacancy on that council. Discussion may include consensus or a straw poll to narrow the list of candidates, though no selection would be final or binding unless voted on at a meeting open to the public.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-16-02
A local body may not meet by any kind of electronic means; all participating members must be physically assembled in one place. The public, however, may participate in a meeting via electronic means.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-17-02
The Halifax Industrial Development Authority is a public body subject to FOIA. The FOI Advisory Council’s formal written and informal opinions are advisory only; they do not carry the enforcement authority of a court ruling.
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-13-02
Prison records on procedures and policies may be withheld under exemption #69 only to the extent that release of the information would jeopardize the security and safety of the building or individuals. A prison could invoke the exemption to withhold records about how a body is transported out of the prison, but if it doesn’t…
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FOI Advisory Council Opinion AO-12-02
To claim the working papers exemption, a locality can have only one chief executive, such as the mayor or the city manager. The choice is based on the form of government and the charter, not a title. Whichever one it is, a locality cannot switch back and forth from one to the other.