HB 1389 FOIA; record exclusion for trade secrets submitted to Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

Chief patron: Robinson

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; record exclusion for trade secrets submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. Excludes from the mandatory disclosure provisions of FOIA trade secrets, as defined in the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (§ 59.1-336 et seq.), submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy as part of the required permit or permit modification to commence ground-disturbing activities. The bill provides that in order for such trade secrets to be excluded, the submitting party shall (i) invoke this exclusion upon submission of the data or materials for which protection from disclosure is sought, (ii) identify the data or materials for which protection is sought, and (iii) state the reasons why protection is necessary.

01/27/16 House: Assigned GL sub: Subcommittee #2
01/28/16 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment(s) (4-Y 2-N)
02/01/16 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB1389)
02/09/16 House: Continued to 2017 in General Laws
12/01/16 House: Left in General Laws

HB 1539 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; public access to records of public bodies.

Chief patron: LeMunyon

Summary as passed House:

Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); public access to records of public bodies. Clarifies the definition of public record. The bill also (i) defines "personal contact information" that is excluded from FOIA's mandatory disclosure provisions in certain cases; (ii) clarifies that a requester has the right to inspect records or receive copies at his option; (iii) clarifies language in certain record exclusions under FOIA that certain records may be disclosed at the discretion of the custodian; (iv) consolidates the personnel record exclusion with the limitation on the application of that exclusion, and specifically clarifies that the name, in addition to position, job classification, and salary, of a public employee is public information as per opinions of the Attorney General and the FOIA Council; (v) eliminates, effective July 1, 2018, the exclusion for the Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority relating to operating and marketing strategies; (vi) eliminates the exclusion for correspondence of local officials as unnecessary; (vii) consolidates various public safety exclusions relating to building plans and drawings and critical infrastructure into a single exclusion; (viii) eliminates the exclusion for administrative investigations of the Department of Human Resource Management, as the exclusion is already covered under the personnel records exclusion; (ix) expands the exclusion for personal information provided to the Virginia College Savings Plan to cover qualified beneficiaries, designated survivors, and authorized individuals, which terms are defined in the bill; (x) consolidates the various record exclusions for the Department of Health Professions and the Department of Health into single exclusions for each Department; (xi) clarifies certain Department of Social Services exclusions; (xii) provides an exclusion for local finance boards that provide postemployment benefits other than pensions; and (xiii) eliminates the record exclusion for Virginia Wildlife Magazine. The bill also limits the application of the working papers exemption by stating that information publicly available or not otherwise subject to an exclusion under FOIA or other provision of law that has been aggregated, combined, or changed in format but does not contain a material revision to such information shall not be deemed working papers. . The bill contains numerous technical amendments. This bill is a recommendation of the Freedom of Information Advisory Council pursuant to the HJR 96 FOIA study (2014-2016).

02/15/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (40-Y 0-N)
02/16/17 Senate: Read third time
02/16/17 Senate: Passed Senate (39-Y 0-N)
02/16/17 Senate: Reconsideration of Senate passage agreed to by Senate (40-Y 0-N)
02/16/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)

HB 1540 Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); public access to meetings of public bodies.

Chief patron: LeMunyon

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); public access to meetings of public bodies. Revises FOIA's various open meeting exemptions relating to legal matters, litigation, certain museums, and the Virginia Commonwealth University Health System Authority. The bill also (i) clarifies where meeting notices and minutes are to be posted, (ii) requires copies of proposed agendas to be made available, (iii) eliminates reporting to the Joint Commission on Science and Technology when a state public body convenes an electronic communication meeting, and (iv) makes technical corrections to several open meeting exemptions to provide context for those meeting exemptions that currently only cross-reference corollary records exemptions. The bill also clarifies closed meeting procedures. The bill contains numerous technical corrections. This bill is a recommendation of the Freedom of Information Advisory Council pursuant to the HJR 96 FOIA study (2014-2016).

02/16/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)
02/20/17 House: Enrolled
02/20/17 House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB1540ER)
02/21/17 House: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/21/17
02/21/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, March 27, 2017

HB 1587 Uniform Statewide Building Code; security of certain records.

Chief patron: Campbell

Summary as passed House:

Uniform Statewide Building Code; security of certain records. Provides that information contained in engineering and construction drawings and plans for any single-family residential dwelling submitted for the purpose of complying with the Uniform Statewide Building Code (§ 36-97 et seq.) or the Statewide Fire Prevention Code (§ 27-94 et seq.) shall be confidential and shall not be subject to disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.), except to the applicant or the owner of the property upon the applicant's or owner's request.

02/02/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
02/20/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology (13-Y 2-N)
02/21/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Read third time
02/22/17 Senate: Passed Senate (38-Y 2-N)

HB 1678 FOIA; trade secrets submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

Chief patron: Robinson

Summary as passed House:

Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); trade secrets submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. Excludes from the mandatory disclosure provisions of FOIA trade secrets, as defined in the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (§ 59.1-336 et seq.), submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy that identify the amount or concentration of chemicals or ingredients used to stimulate a well pursuant to § 45.1-361.29 or Department regulations concerning such ground-disturbing activities. The bill requires that for such records to be protected, the submitting party must (i) invoke this FOIA exclusion upon submission of the data or materials for which protection from disclosure is sought, (ii) identify the data or materials for which protection is sought, and (iii) state the reasons why protection is necessary. The bill requires the Department to determine whether the information claimed to be a trade secret is entitled to such protection.

01/31/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed
01/31/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
02/02/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB1678E)
02/13/17 Senate: Failed to report (defeated) in General Laws and Technology (6-Y 8-N)
02/17/17 House: Fiscal impact review from JLARC (HB1678E)

HB 1679 Well permit applications; disclosure of trade secrets.

Chief patron: Robinson

Summary as introduced:
Well permit applications; disclosure of trade secrets. Authorizes the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy (Department) to require disclosure of chemical ingredient names, chemical abstracts numbers, or the amount or concentration of chemicals or ingredients used to stimulate a well notwithstanding exclusion from mandatory disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act as a trade secret. The bill authorizes the Director of the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy (Director) to disclose such information to additional Department staff or state or local officials to assist the Department in responding to an emergency. The bill prohibits such individuals from disseminating such information further. The bill requires the Director to notify the party that submitted the trade secret of disclosure as soon as practicable. The bill prohibits orders issued pursuant to § 45.1-361.27 from including trade secret information.

02/07/17 House: VOTE: PASSAGE (63-Y 34-N)
02/08/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed
02/08/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources
02/09/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB1679E)
02/16/17 Senate: Stricken at request of Patron in Agriculture, Conservation and Natural Resources (9-Y 0-N)

HB 1701 Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory (FOIA) Council; membership.

Chief patron: Yancey

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory (FOIA) Council; membership. Increases the membership of the FOIA Council from 12 to 13. The bill increases the number of nonlegislative citizen appointees made by the Speaker of the House of Delegates that represent the news media from at least one to at least two of his four appointments.

01/06/17 House: Referred to Committee on General Laws
01/16/17 House: Assigned GL sub: Subcommittee #2
01/25/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB1701)
01/31/17 House: Subcommittee recommends laying on the table
02/08/17 House: Left in General Laws

HB 1734 Virginia Parole Board; exceptions to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Chief patron: Hope

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Parole Board; exceptions to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). Requires guidance documents of the Virginia Parole Board to be available as public records under FOIA.

02/10/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
02/20/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology (14-Y 1-N)
02/21/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Read third time
02/22/17 Senate: Passed Senate (39-Y 1-N)

HB 1876 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; public access to library records of minors.

Chief patron: Pogge

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; public access to library records of minors. Excludes from mandatory disclosure library records that can be used to identify any library patron under the age of 18 years. The bill provides that access shall not be denied to the parent, including a noncustodial parent, or guardian of such library patron.

02/10/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
02/20/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology (15-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Read third time
02/22/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)

HB 1932 Virginia Freedom of Information (FOIA) Advisory Council; terms of nonlegislative citizen members.

Chief patron: Carr

Summary as passed House:

Virginia Freedom of Information (FOIA) Advisory Council; terms of nonlegislative citizen members. Clarifies that at the end of the appointed term of a nonlegislative citizen member of the FOIA Advisory Council, the nonlegislative citizen member shall continue to serve until a successor is appointed. This bill is a recommendation of the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council.

02/16/17 House: Signed by Speaker
02/17/17 Senate: Signed by President
02/17/17 House: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/17/17
02/17/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, February 24, 2017
02/21/17 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 141 (effective 7/1/17)

HB 1971 FOIA; record and meeting exclusions for multidisciplinary child abuse teams.

Chief patron: Massie

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; record and meeting exclusions for multidisciplinary child abuse teams. Excludes the records of a multidisciplinary team as they relate to individual child abuse or neglect cases or sex offenses involving a child from mandatory disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The bill also provides an exemption from open meeting requirements to such teams and sexual assault response teams.

02/10/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
02/20/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology (14-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Read third time
02/22/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)

HB 2143 FOIA; training approved by Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council, online courses offered.

Chief patron: LeMunyon

Summary as passed House:

Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); training provided by the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council. Requires the Freedom of Information Advisory Council to maintain on its website a listing of all FOIA officers, including name, contact information, and the name of the public body such FOIA officers serve. The bill requires the name and contact information of FOIA officers trained by legal counsel of a public body to be submitted to the Council by July 1 of each year on a form developed by the Council for that purpose and to be updated in a timely manner in the event of any changes to such information. The bill also provides that training through an online course offered by the Council shall satisfy the annual training requirement for FOIA officers.

02/20/17 House: Enrolled
02/20/17 House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2143ER)
02/20/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB2143ER)
02/21/17 House: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/21/17
02/21/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, March 27, 2017

HB 2144 Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council; increases membership, effect of missing meetings.

Chief patron: LeMunyon

Summary as passed House:

Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council; membership; effect of missing meetings. Increases the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council from 12 members to 14 members by adding one additional member from the House of Delegates and one additional member from the Senate. The bill also provides that if any nonlegislative citizen member of the Council fails to attend a majority of meetings of the Council in a calendar year, the Council shall notify the member's appointing authority, who may, upon receipt of such notification, remove the member and appoint a successor as soon as possible.

02/17/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 House: Enrolled
02/21/17 House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2144ER)
02/21/17 House: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/21/17
02/21/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, March 27, 2017

HB 2146 Freedom of Information Advisory Council; online public comment form.

Chief patron: LeMunyon

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); Freedom of Information Advisory Council; online public comment form. Requires the Freedom of Information Advisory Council to develop an online public comment form to be posted on its official public government website to enable any requester to comment on the quality of assistance provided to the requester by a public body. The bill also requires all state public bodies subject to the provisions of FOIA and any county or city, and any town with a population of more than 250, to post a link on its official public government website to the online public comment form.

02/20/17 House: Enrolled
02/20/17 House: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB2146ER)
02/20/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB2146ER)
02/21/17 House: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on 2/21/17
02/21/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, March 27, 2017

HB 2178 FOIA; proprietary records and trade secrets, charitable gaming supplies.

Chief patron: Hodges

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); proprietary records and trade secrets; charitable gaming supplies. Expands the existing FOIA record exclusion for information of a proprietary nature furnished by a supplier of charitable gaming supplies to the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to include such information submitted by manufacturers of charitable gaming supplies. The bill also expands the exclusion to include information submitted by suppliers and manufacturers of charitable gaming supplies pursuant to regulations promulgated by the Charitable Gaming Board related to approval of electronic and mechanical equipment.

02/10/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
02/20/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology (14-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Read third time
02/22/17 Senate: Passed Senate (40-Y 0-N)

HB 2223 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; right to speak at open meetings.

Chief patron: Kory

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; right to speak at open meetings. Requires that every public body afford an opportunity for public comment during any open meeting and requires that the public comment periods be noticed on the public body's agenda. The bill permits the public body to have discretion in where it places the public comment period on its agenda and permits the public body to adopt reasonable rules governing the public comment portion of the meeting, including imposing reasonable restrictions on time, place, and manner. The bill requires that for meetings of all public bodies, not just those state public bodies on which there is at least one member appointed by the Governor as in current law, the notice provided for any such meeting include a statement as to approximately at what point during the meeting public comment will be received.

01/11/17 House: Referred to Committee on General Laws
01/16/17 House: Assigned GL sub: Subcommittee #2
01/23/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB2223)
01/26/17 House: Subcommittee recommends reporting with amendment (5-Y 2-N)
02/02/17 House: Tabled in General Laws

HB 2401 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; minutes of closed meetings required, audio recordings.

Chief patron: Morris

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; minutes of closed meetings required; audio recordings. Provides that a public body shall (i) take closed meeting minutes, (ii) also make an audio recording of the entirety of every meeting that is closed to the public, and (iii) use a means of recording that fully captures and can clearly reproduce all statements made during a closed meeting. The bill provides that the minutes or recordings made shall not be subject to the disclosure provisions of FOIA.

01/18/17 House: Referred to Committee on General Laws
01/23/17 House: Assigned GL sub: Subcommittee #2
01/23/17 House: Impact statement from DPB (HB2401)
01/31/17 House: Subcommittee recommends laying on the table
02/08/17 House: Left in General Laws

HB 2402 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; willful violations, grounds for termination.

Chief patron: Morris

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; willful violations; grounds for termination. Provides that if the court finds that any officer or employee of a public body (i) receives a request for records that was sent by a requester by certified mail, return receipt requested, and (ii) without legal excuse or justification, deliberately, willfully, and knowingly fails to make a response to such request, such officer or employee may be terminated for cause by his appointing authority or agency head.

02/07/17 House: VOTE: PASSAGE (67-Y 27-N)
02/08/17 Senate: Constitutional reading dispensed
02/08/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
02/10/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
02/20/17 Senate: Failed to report (defeated) in General Laws and Technology (6-Y 7-N)

SB 931 Va Freedom of Information Act; working papers and correspondence exempt.for presidents of higher ed.

Chief patron: Petersen

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; working papers and correspondence exemption for presidents of public institutions of higher education. Eliminates the working papers and correspondence record exemption for the president or other chief executive officer of any public institution of higher education in Virginia. The bill contains a technical amendment.

12/27/16 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17102927D
12/27/16 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
01/17/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
01/23/17 Senate: Failed to report (defeated) in General Laws and Technology (6-Y 7-N)

SB 972 Requests for information by members of the General Assembly; responses not subject to redaction.

Chief patron: DeSteph

Summary as introduced:
Requests for information by members of the General Assembly; responses not subject to redaction. Requires all departments, agencies, and institutions of the Commonwealth and staff and employees thereof to respond to a request for information made by a member of the General Assembly. The bill further provides that notwithstanding the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.), a response to a request for information made by a member of the General Assembly shall not be subject to redaction.

01/03/17 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17100582D
01/03/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on Rules
01/26/17 Senate: Impact statement from DPB (SB972)
02/02/17 Senate: Committee substitute printed to LIS only 17104234D-S1
02/02/17 Senate: Passed by indefinitely in Rules with letter (11-Y 3-N)

SB 990 Electric energy consumption reduction goal; progress reports.

Chief patron: Dance

Summary as passed Senate:

Electric energy consumption reduction goal; progress reports. Directs the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy, in consultation with the staff of the State Corporation Commission, to report annually, commencing no later than December 15, 2018, on the progress the Commonwealth is making toward meeting the goal adopted in 2007 of reducing the consumption of electric energy by retail customers by the year 2022 by an amount equal to 10 percent of the amount of electric energy consumed by retail customers in 2006. The bill requires the reports to be made to the General Assembly, the Governor, and the Governor's Executive Committee on Energy Efficiency.

02/17/17 House: Reconsideration of House passage agreed to by House
02/17/17 House: Passed House (74-Y 23-N 1-A)
02/17/17 House: VOTE: PASSAGE #2 (74-Y 23-N 1-A)
02/22/17 Senate: Enrolled
02/22/17 Senate: Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB990ER)

SB 1040 FOIA; record exclusion for personal contact information, definition.

Chief patron: Hanger

Summary as passed Senate:

Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); record exclusion for personal contact information; limitation. Provides that personal contact information provided to a public body for the purpose of receiving electronic mail from the public body is excluded from the mandatory disclosure provisions of FOIA, provided that the electronic mail recipient has requested that the public body not disclose such information. The bill defines "personal contact information" as the home or business (i) address, (ii) email address, or (iii) telephone number or comparable number assigned to any other electronic communication device. Current law excludes "personal information," which is defined as including a broader range of information than the limited definition of personal contact information in the bill.

02/13/17 Senate: Signed by President
02/13/17 House: Signed by Speaker
02/14/17 Senate: Enrolled Bill Communicated to Governor on 2/14/17
02/14/17 Governor: Governor's Action Deadline Midnight, February 21, 2017
02/21/17 Governor: Approved by Governor-Chapter 140 (effective 7/1/17)

SB 1102 FOIA; records of completed unattended death investigations, definition, mandatory disclosure.

Chief patron: Surovell

Summary as passed Senate:

Virginia Freedom of Information Act; completed unattended death investigations; mandatory disclosure. Requires that records of completed unattended death investigations to the parent or spouse of the decedent or, if there is no living parent or spouse, to the most immediate family member of the decedent. The bill also defines "unattended death" and "immediate family member."

02/16/17 House: Reported from General Laws (22-Y 0-N)
02/20/17 House: Read second time
02/21/17 House: Read third time
02/21/17 House: Passed House BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (98-Y 0-N)

SB 1103 FOIA; closed meeting violations, civil penalty.

Chief patron: Surovell

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); closed meeting violations; civil penalty. Provides that in addition to any penalties imposed under FOIA, if the court finds that a member of a public body voted to certify a closed meeting and at the time of such certification such certification constituted a departure from the requirements of FOIA, the court shall impose on all members voting to certify in their individual capacity, whether or not a writ of mandamus or injunctive relief is awarded, a civil penalty of $500 each, which amount shall be paid into the State Literary Fund.

01/07/17 Senate: Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/11/17 17100867D
01/07/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
01/17/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
01/27/17 Senate: Impact statement from DPB (SB1103)
02/08/17 Senate: Left in General Laws and Technology

SB 1128 FOIA; failure to respond to request for records, rebuttable presumption.

Chief patron: DeSteph

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; failure to respond to request for records; rebuttable presumption. Provides that there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a failure to respond to a request for records was willful and knowing.

02/01/17 Senate: Passed by for the day
02/02/17 Senate: Passed by for the day
02/03/17 Senate: Passed by for the day
02/06/17 Senate: Passed by for the day
02/07/17 Senate: Passed by for the day

SB 1226 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; proprietary records and trade secrets.

Chief patron: Edwards

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act; Public Procurement Act; proprietary records and trade secrets; solar energy agreements. Excludes from the mandatory disclosure provisions of FOIA proprietary information, voluntarily provided by a private business under a promise of confidentiality from a public body, used by the public body for a solar photovoltaic services agreement, a solar power purchase agreement, or a solar self-generation agreement. The bill requires the private business to specify the records for which protection is sought before submitting them to the public body and to state the reasons why protection is necessary. The bill also (i) allows a solar services agreement contractor or provider to designate specific provisions in a solar services agreement as proprietary information not subject to disclosure, and (ii) authorizes a city to withhold from disclosure such information provided by a private entity in connection with a franchise, lease or use under a solar photovoltaic services agreement, a solar power purchase agreement, or a solar self-generation agreement.

02/21/17 House: Engrossed by House - committee substitute SB1226H1
02/21/17 House: Passed House with substitute BLOCK VOTE (98-Y 0-N)
02/21/17 House: VOTE: BLOCK VOTE PASSAGE (98-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: House substitute agreed to by Senate (39-Y 0-N)
02/22/17 Senate: Title replaced 17105461D-H1

SB 1291 Well permit applications; disclosure of trade secrets.

Chief patron: Chafin

Summary as introduced:
Well permit applications; disclosure of trade secrets. Authorizes the Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy (Department) to require disclosure of chemical ingredient names, chemical abstracts numbers, or the amount or concentration of chemicals or ingredients used to stimulate a well notwithstanding exclusion from mandatory disclosure under the Virginia Freedom of Information Act as a trade secret. The bill authorizes the Director of the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy (Director) to disclose such information to additional Department staff or state or local officials to assist the Department in responding to an emergency. The bill prohibits such individuals from disseminating such information further. The bill requires the Director to notify the party that submitted the trade secret of disclosure as soon as practicable. The bill prohibits orders issued pursuant to § 45.1-361.27 from including trade secret information.

01/24/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
01/30/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment (9-Y 6-N)
01/30/17 Senate: Rereferred to Finance
02/02/17 Senate: Impact statement from DPB (SB1291)
02/02/17 Senate: Failed to report (defeated) in Finance (8-Y 8-N)

SB 1292 FOIA; trade secrets submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy.

Chief patron: Chafin

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); trade secrets submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. Excludes from the mandatory disclosure provisions of FOIA trade secrets, as defined in the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (§ 59.1-336 et seq.), submitted to the Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy that identify chemical ingredient names, the chemical abstracts number for a chemical ingredient, or the amount or concentration of chemicals or ingredients used to stimulate a well pursuant to § 45.1-361.29 or Department regulations concerning such ground-disturbing activities. The bill requires that for such records to be protected, the submitting party must (i) invoke this FOIA exclusion upon submission of the data or materials for which protection from disclosure is sought, (ii) identify the data or materials for which protection is sought, and (iii) state the reasons why protection is necessary. The bill requires the Department to determine whether the information claimed to be a trade secret is entitled to such protection.

01/17/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
01/30/17 Senate: Reported from General Laws and Technology with amendment (8-Y 7-N)
01/30/17 Senate: Rereferred to Finance
02/02/17 Senate: Impact statement from DPB (SB1292)
02/02/17 Senate: Failed to report (defeated) in Finance (8-Y 8-N)

SB 1436 Virginia Freedom of Information Act; expands definition of public body.

Chief patron: Petersen

Summary as introduced:
Virginia Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); definition of public body. Expands the definition of public body under FOIA to include any foundation that exists for the primary purpose of supporting a public institution of higher education and that is exempt from taxation under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

01/13/17 Senate: Presented and ordered printed 17102937D
01/13/17 Senate: Referred to Committee on General Laws and Technology
01/17/17 Senate: Assigned GL&T sub: #1
01/24/17 Senate: Impact statement from DPB (SB1436)
02/08/17 Senate: Left in General Laws and Technology

Counts: HB: 18 SB: 11