Maine makes progress in public records access

Significant gains have been made in recent years in Maine to protect public access to government records and meetings, according to Judith Meyer of the Maine Freedom of Information Coalition.

Meyer lists Maine’s first statewide public records audit, in which public agencies across the state were checked for their compliance with Maine’s Freedom of Access Act.

The audit, showing widespread noncompliance, helped to bring about a 2003 law requiring all law enforcement agencies to adopt written freedom of information policies.

A legislative Freedom of Information Commission now reviews government compliance with Maine’s access law, promotes training and written FOI policies and recommends ways in which the law can be improved.

Maine adopted a first-in-the-nation process to review every exception written into Maine’s Freedom of Access Act, said Meyer. The exceptions have been consolidated into the law so the public doesn’t have to search individual statutes to find them.

In addition, a 2004 law establishes “reasonable” fees for photocopies of public records, requires government to respond to requests for public information within a “reasonable amount of time,” and required government bodies to cite the specific statute under which they vote to retire into executive session.

Maine news media organizations claimed a victory in 2003 when the state supreme court ruled that the Maine Harness Racing Commission had to release documents about the business background and dealings of former Bangor racino applicant Shawn Scott.

Maine Freedom of Information Coalition: www.mfoic.org/

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