| Opinion
No. |
Issue(s)
|
March |
|
AO-01-09
|
An
agency that is supported wholly or principally by public
funds is a public body subject to FOIA. A response to
a records request that does not meet the procedural requirements
of FOIA is not a proper response. |
AO-02-09
|
Scholastic
records, by definition, are those records which contain
information directly related to a student and maintained
by a public body that is an educational agency or institution
or by a person acting for such agency or institution.
A denial of a records request must cite the specific Code
section that authorizes the withholding of the records. |
May |
|
AO-03-09
|
A
task force jointly created by multiple public bodies to
advise them is itself a public body subject to FOIA. Likewise,
a regional public body provided for by statute and established
by the resolutions of several local public bodies is also
subject to FOIA. Both must comply with the procedural
rules for conducting public meetings. |
AO-04-09
|
Subsection
D of § 15.2-2907 provides that certain meetings that
are or would be subject to review by the Commission on
Local Government are not subject to FOIA. |
AO-05-09
|
FOIA
requires that meeting minutes be in writing and include
a record of any votes taken. |
June |
|
AO-06-09
|
Public
bodies may make reasonable charges not to exceed the actual
cost incurred in accessing, duplicating, supplying, or
searching for requested records. Public bodies are not
required to waive charges, but may do so in their discretion.
Public bodies may not charge a requester for using certified
mail without the requester's agreement. |
AO-07-09
|
Generally,
local public bodies may not meet or cast votes by electronic
means. A telephone conversation between an administrator
and a single member of a public body is not a meeting
subject to FOIA. |
August |
|
AO-08-09
|
Public
records posted on a public body's website or otherwise
put into the public domain remain subject to FOIA. It
is generally expected that public bodies will not charge
for sending brief electronic mail messages providing web
addresses or copied excerpts of electronic records, as
the actual costs incurred usually are negligible. |
October |
|
AO-09-09
|
A
nonprofit foundation that raises funds from private sources
to pay for its own operations and to provide financial
support to a government entity is not a public body subject
to FOIA. |
November |
|
AO-10-09
|
Subsection
G of § 2.2-3706 provides exemptions for certain records
held by local sheriffs and chiefs of police. As written
it does not apply to records of the Department of State
Police. |
AO-11-09
|
An
advisory group created by a public body to advise the
public body would itself be a public body subject to FOIA.
However, such a group created by a public employee to
advise the employee would not be a public body. Likewise,
such an advisory group would not be a public body if it
was self-appointed. |
December |
|
AO-12-09
|
The
Virginia State Bar is a public body subject to FOIA. A
task force created by a public employee to advise that
employee is not a public body. Records in the possession
of a public body or employee in the transaction of public
business are public records. Questions regarding constitutional
separation of powers are beyond the statutory authority
of the FOIA Council. Public bodies do not have to create
records that do not already exist in order to respond
to a records request, but must inform the requester that
the records do not exist. |
AO-13-09
|
A
motion to convene a closed meeting must identify the subject
of the meeting, state its purpose, and provide a reference
to an applicable exemption. Quoting or paraphrasing a
statutory exemption states the purpose of the meeting,
but does not identify the subject. FOIA places the duty
to identify the subject of a closed meeting upon the public
body holding the meeting, not its attorney. |
