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Council withdraws proposed restriction on commercial use of public records after legal concerns
Summary
A proposed Muncie ordinance that would bar commercial use of documents obtained through public-records requests was withdrawn after the city attorney flagged a 10-year restriction in the draft that is not in Indiana law and could raise First Amendment concerns.
The Common Council withdrew Ordinance 8-26 on April 6 after the city attorney warned the draft contained a potentially problematic 10-year restriction not found in the state administrative code.
Councilmember Jagan/Arnold (city attorney) provided a legal summary at the request of the sponsor and said the draft largely mimics the Indiana statute and administrative code. He told the council his principal concern was a clause imposing a 10‑year restriction on commercial use of records that appears in the draft but not in state law; he said that addition could be seen as arbitrary and might raise First Amendment issues.
After that legal assessment the ordinance sponsor asked to withdraw Ordinance 8-26 until the issue is resolved. The council recorded the withdrawal on the agenda so staff can revise the language and return with a clarified draft.
The withdrawal leaves the city’s public-records rules unchanged pending revision. Council members did not take a final vote on the ordinance after the withdrawal.
