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County legal staff reviews FOIA basics, cautions board on texts, emails and record retention
Summary
County legal staff gave an overview of public‑records law, told members that most government materials are potentially public records, and warned that electronic communications (texts, emails during meetings) and notes can become discoverable and costly if not handled carefully.
County legal staff briefed the Committee of the Whole on Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) basics, the broad definition of public records and practical steps board members can take to avoid inadvertent disclosure or litigation exposure.
A county staff presenter summarized the FOIA standard: material that “pertains to the transaction of public business” and is “prepared, used, received or possessed” by the public body is potentially a public record. The speaker said “anything where the government is storing data is a potential record,” and walked through common scenarios—emails, text threads, meeting notes and cloud storage—where records may exist beyond a board member’s personal device.
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