Alabama Considers FOIA Exemption for Security - March 22, 2004 Vol. 5, No. 6

March 22, 2004 Vol. 5, No. 6:

Published: 03/22/2004

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Alabama Considers FOIA Exemption for Security

The Alabama legislature recently introduced Senate Bill 205, which would exempt security information from public disclosure currently mandated under four laws. Alabama State Sen. Steve French (R-Birmingham) sponsored the bill.

Alabama’s four information disclosure laws are a Sunshine Law, Open Records Law, Competitive Bid Law, and Public Works Law. These laws require records, meetings of state, county and municipal boards, state or local contracts and bids for contracts to be open for public scrutiny. While security concerns are legitimate reasons for protecting some information, many worry that legislators will use the law to hide other non-security information.

Alabama joins a growing number of states that have considered altering their access to information laws due to security concerns. Fortunately, as we move further away from Sept. 11, these proposals are becoming less frequent.