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Senate bill seeks to clarify legislators’ access to confidential agency information
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Summary
Senator West described SB 2566 to clarify processes and timelines for legislative access to confidential and public information from executive agencies, proposing standardized confidential-agreement forms and a 10‑day response deadline for the attorney general; the committee left the bill pending after opening remarks and no witnesses registered.
Senator West told the Senate Committee on Business & Commerce that SB 2566 would clarify the process for legislators to obtain confidential and public information from executive agencies and would standardize the confidentiality agreements used for that access.
Under the bill as explained by West, the right to access would apply to information provided for legislative purposes unless another statute explicitly prohibits disclosure. He said the bill would require governmental bodies to treat a request under Section 552 the same as a public request and would require agencies to respond within 10 days. The bill would also require that only legislators and their staff who receive confidential information sign the confidentiality agreement and would direct the attorney general to publish a standard confidentiality agreement form on its website.
Senator West told the committee the attorney general must render an opinion within 10 days when asked whether an agreement complies with statutory requirements, and the bill would establish complaint procedures and administrative penalties for noncompliance.
No witnesses registered to testify on SB 2566 at this hearing and the chair closed public testimony; the bill was left pending. Senator West said the measure is intended to give ‘‘much needed clarification’’ about legislators’ rights to information from agencies and to define remedies where agencies fail to comply.
