Bill Text: NY A02750 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Amended

---

Bill Title: Establishes that in a FOIL proceeding, the court shall assess against an agency reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs incurred when a person substantially prevails unless the court finds otherwise.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 20-0)

Status: (Passed) 2017-12-13 - approval memo.33 [A02750 Detail]

Download: New_York-2017-A02750-Amended.html

---

                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                         2750--A
                               2017-2018 Regular Sessions
                   IN ASSEMBLY
                                    January 23, 2017
                                       ___________
        Introduced  by M. of A. PAULIN, GALEF, BRINDISI, CAHILL, HIKIND, JAFFEE,
          KAVANAGH, MAGNARELLI, ROSENTHAL, TITONE,  ZEBROWSKI,  FAHY  --  Multi-
          Sponsored  by  --  M.  of  A. COLTON, COOK, GOTTFRIED, LUPARDO, PERRY,
          THIELE, WRIGHT -- read once and referred to the Committee  on  Govern-
          mental  Operations  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
        AN ACT to amend the public officers  law,  in  relation  to  freedom  of
          information requests and attorney's fees
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 89 of the  public
     2  officers  law, as amended by chapter 492 of the laws of 2006, is amended
     3  to read as follows:
     4    (c) The court in such a proceeding: (i) may assess, against such agen-
     5  cy involved, reasonable  attorney's  fees  and  other  litigation  costs
     6  reasonably  incurred  by such person in any case under the provisions of
     7  this section in which such person has substantially prevailed, [when:
     8    i. the agency had no reasonable basis for denying access; or
     9    ii.] and when the agency failed to respond  to  a  request  or  appeal
    10  within  the  statutory  time; and (ii) shall assess, against such agency
    11  involved, reasonable attorney's fees and other litigation costs  reason-
    12  ably  incurred  by  such person in any case under the provisions of this
    13  section in which such person has substantially prevailed and  the  court
    14  finds that the agency had no reasonable basis for denying access.
    15    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD06775-02-7