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Planning commissioners briefed on FOIA duties, records and communication rules
Summary
Prince William County's Planning Commission received a training from the County Attorney's Office covering Virginia FOIA: meetings vs. informal gatherings, public-records scope including drafts, five-working-day response deadlines, exemptions, and best practices for emails and staff routing to avoid inadvertent meetings.
At an annual working session, the Prince William County Planning Commission received instruction from deputy county attorney Rob Scoff on the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, including how routine communications and records can trigger public access requirements.
Scoff told commissioners that "meetings and records are presumed open," and that a gathering of three or more members that transacts or discusses public business qualifies as a meeting under FOIA. He warned that ‘‘relatively simultaneous" email or text exchanges among members can create an inadvertent…
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