Bill Text: OH HB294 | 2011-2012 | 129th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: To prohibit the Legislative Service Commission staff, when preparing a legislative document, from communicating with outside parties without a member of the General Assembly or General Assembly staff present and to make communications between such parties and Legislative Service Commission staff public records.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 17-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-07-06 - To State Government & Elections [HB294 Detail]
Download: Ohio-2011-HB294-Introduced.html
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Representatives Celeste, Goyal
Cosponsors:
Representatives Hagan, R., Ramos, Garland, O'Brien, Foley, Antonio, Phillips, Patmon, Murray, Yuko, Letson, Okey, Fende, Lundy, Pillich
To amend section 101.30 and to enact section 101.302 | 1 |
of the Revised Code to prohibit the Legislative | 2 |
Service Commission staff, when preparing a | 3 |
legislative document, from communicating with | 4 |
outside parties without a member of the General | 5 |
Assembly or General Assembly staff present and to | 6 |
make communications between such parties and | 7 |
Legislative Service Commission staff public | 8 |
records. | 9 |
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 101.30 be amended and section | 10 |
101.302 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows: | 11 |
Sec. 101.30. (A) As used in this section and section 101.302 | 12 |
of the Revised Code: | 13 |
(1) "Legislative document" includes, but is not limited to, | 14 |
all of the following: | 15 |
(a) A working paper, work product, correspondence, | 16 |
preliminary draft, note, proposed bill or resolution, proposed | 17 |
amendment to a bill or resolution, analysis, opinion, memorandum, | 18 |
or other document in whatever form or format prepared by | 19 |
legislative staff for a member of the general assembly or for | 20 |
general assembly staff; | 21 |
(b) Any document or material in whatever form or format | 22 |
provided by a member of the general assembly or general assembly | 23 |
staff to legislative staff that requests, or that provides | 24 |
information or materials to assist in, the preparation of any of | 25 |
the items described in division (A)(1)(a) of this section; | 26 |
(c) Any summary of a bill or resolution or of an amendment to | 27 |
a bill or resolution in whatever form or format that is prepared | 28 |
by or in the possession of a member of the general assembly or | 29 |
general assembly staff, if the summary is prepared before the | 30 |
bill, resolution, or amendment is filed for introduction or | 31 |
presented at a committee hearing or floor session, as applicable. | 32 |
(2) "Legislative staff" means the staff of the legislative | 33 |
service commission | 34 |
35 | |
the legislative service commission budget group. | 36 |
(3) "General assembly staff" means an officer or employee of | 37 |
either house of the general assembly who acts on behalf of a | 38 |
member of the general assembly or on behalf of a committee or | 39 |
either house of the general assembly. | 40 |
(B) | 41 |
of this section, legislative staff shall maintain a confidential | 42 |
relationship with each member of the general assembly, and with | 43 |
each member of the general assembly staff, with respect to | 44 |
communications between the member of the general assembly or | 45 |
general assembly staff and legislative staff. Except as otherwise | 46 |
provided in | 47 |
legislative document arising out of this confidential relationship | 48 |
is not a public record for purposes of section 149.43 of the | 49 |
Revised Code. When it is in the public interest and with the | 50 |
consent of the commission, the director of the commission may | 51 |
release to the public any legislative document in the possession | 52 |
of the commission staff arising out of a confidential relationship | 53 |
with a former member of the general assembly or former member of | 54 |
the general assembly staff who is not available to make the | 55 |
legislative document a public record as provided in division (C) | 56 |
of this section because of death or disability, whom the director | 57 |
is unable to contact for that purpose, or who fails to respond to | 58 |
the director after the director has made a reasonable number of | 59 |
attempts to make such contact. | 60 |
(C)(1) A legislative document is a public record for purposes | 61 |
of section 149.43 of the Revised Code if it is an analysis, | 62 |
synopsis, fiscal note, or local impact statement prepared by | 63 |
legislative staff that is required to be prepared by law, or by a | 64 |
rule of either house of the general assembly, for the benefit of | 65 |
the members of either or both of those houses or any legislative | 66 |
committee and if it has been presented to those members. | 67 |
(2) A legislative document is a public record for purposes of | 68 |
section 149.43 of the Revised Code if a member of the general | 69 |
assembly for whom legislative staff prepared the legislative | 70 |
document does any of the following: | 71 |
(a) Files it for introduction with the clerk of the senate or | 72 |
the clerk of the house of representatives, if it is a bill or | 73 |
resolution; | 74 |
(b) Presents it at a committee hearing or floor session, if | 75 |
it is an amendment to a bill or resolution or is a substitute bill | 76 |
or resolution; | 77 |
(c) Releases it, or authorizes general assembly staff or | 78 |
legislative staff to release it, to the public. | 79 |
(D)(1) Any communication, including any form of electronic | 80 |
communication, that occurs between a member of the staff of the | 81 |
legislative service commission and an individual who is not a | 82 |
member of the general assembly, a member of the general assembly | 83 |
staff, or another member of the staff of the legislative service | 84 |
commission and that is regarding a legislative document is a | 85 |
public record under section 149.43 of the Revised Code. | 86 |
(2) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the | 87 |
contrary, the presence or inclusion of a member of the general | 88 |
assembly or a member of the general assembly staff during a | 89 |
communication between a member of the staff of the legislative | 90 |
service commission and an individual described in division (D)(1) | 91 |
of this section does not make that communication confidential or | 92 |
change the status of the communication as a public record. | 93 |
Sec. 101.302. (A) Except as otherwise provided in division | 94 |
(B) of this section, no member of the staff of the legislative | 95 |
service commission, with respect to the preparation of a | 96 |
legislative document, shall communicate with an individual who is | 97 |
not a member of the general assembly, a member of the general | 98 |
assembly staff, or another member of the staff of the legislative | 99 |
service commission, without a member of the general assembly or | 100 |
general assembly staff present. | 101 |
With respect to a written communication, including a written | 102 |
communication sent through electronic means, for purposes of this | 103 |
section a member of the general assembly or general assembly staff | 104 |
is considered present if the member of the general assembly or | 105 |
general assembly staff receives a contemporaneous carbon copy of | 106 |
the written communication between the individual described in this | 107 |
division and a member of the staff of the legislative service | 108 |
commission. With respect to an oral communication that occurs | 109 |
through telephone or electronic means, for purposes of this | 110 |
section a member of the general assembly or general assembly staff | 111 |
is considered present if the member of the general assembly or | 112 |
general assembly staff is included in a telephone conference call | 113 |
or a conversation through electronic means occurring between the | 114 |
individual described in this division and a member of the staff of | 115 |
the legislative service commission. | 116 |
(B) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a | 117 |
member of the staff of the legislative service commission from | 118 |
responding to an inquiry regarding a legislative document that is | 119 |
a public record, or to require a member of the general assembly or | 120 |
general assembly staff to be present for a member of the staff of | 121 |
the legislative service commission to respond to such an inquiry. | 122 |
Section 2. That existing section 101.30 of the Revised Code | 123 |
is hereby repealed. | 124 |