News & Notes

Ombudsman’s Blog – Open Matters
Recent Posts

Where are My Records. 7/12/19

Assessing Fees for PIA Requests. 7/3/19

Public Access Ombudsman Adopts Regulations. 6/18/19

Tips for Agency Transparency in the PIA Process. 04/15/2019

Proposed Regulations Noticed – Ombudsman Operations. 3/29/19

Let the Sun Shine In: Maryland Public Access Ombudsman Program. 3/15/19

Proactive Disclosure Saves Time and Money, and It’s the Law. 1/28/19

PIA in the News

• Highlights From The PIA Compliance Board’s Opinions The Public Information Act Compliance Board is holding its annual meeting at 1 pm on Monday, August 19th at 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. In advance of the meeting, we wanted to highlight some of the Board’s most pertinent opinions about PIA fees, roughly categorized by key topic (PIA fees are currently the ...
• Ombudsman and PIACB Seeking Comments on Research Project Did you know that the PIA Compliance Board and Public Access Ombudsman were requested this year by the Chairmen of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and House Appropriations Committee to collect PIA compliance data from 23 state agencies, and to report out recommendations on ways to improve the PIA process? To see the Joint ...
• Where Are My Records? ~This article was submitted by the Office of the Public Access Ombudsman to the Office of the Public Defender Post Conviction Newsletter – Summer 2019. Tips from the Public Access Ombudsman’s Office The Office of the Public Access Ombudsman receives many requests from incarcerated persons who are trying to obtain materials pertaining to their underlying criminal case. ...
• Assessing Fees for PIA Requests Periodically, the Public Access Ombudsman receives questions from both agencies and requestors about the procedures surrounding Maryland Public Information Act (PIA) requests and responses. Below is one such question and answer that the Ombudsman’s Office thinks may be of value to all PIA stakeholders. **The advice given is not legal advice nor is it a binding ...
• Public Access Ombudsman Adopts Regulations The Office of the Public Access Ombudsman (“Office”) would like to inform you that interpretive regulations we circulated this spring have been adopted as of June 17, 2019. We invite you to review the regulations in the current issue of the Maryland Register at the following link, http://www.dsd.state.md.us/MDR/4612.pdf, or on the our website at https://news.maryland.gov/mpiaombuds/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2019/06/Regs061719.pdf. The ...
• Tips for Agency Transparency in the PIA Process On December 30, 2016 the Public Access Ombudsman published the Report Concerning the Howard County Public School System’s (HCPSS) Handling of Requests under the Public Information Act, which was required by HB 1105—legislation passed earlier that year. One of the key themes from that report was: “Open and forthright communication is essential to a relationship of ...
• Proposed Regulations Noticed – Ombudsman Operations The Office of the Public Access Ombudsman (“Office”) would like to inform you of the interpretive regulations it has proposed to govern the Office’s operations. We invite you to review the proposed regulations in the current issue of the Maryland Register at the following link, http://www.dsd.state.md.us/MDR/4607/Assembled.htm#_Toc4491557, and submit any comments by April 29, 2019. The Office ...
• Let the Sun Shine In: Maryland Public Access Ombudsman Program It’s sunshine week and the Ombudsman has some light to shed on Maryland’s Public Access Ombudsman program. On February 25, 2019, the Ombudsman’s office disseminated a stakeholder survey to nearly 950 people who have participated in either Ombudsman mediation or PIA training, or who have otherwise interacted with the Ombudsman’s office.  The recipients included PIA ...
• Court takes hard look at agency’s use of blanket exemptions to deny PIA request, and awards statutory damages and legal fees to requestor PIA  – Baltimore City Court Order
• OAG Testifies on Government Transparency Here is a link to a briefing before the Maryland House Health and Government Operations Committee on January 31, 2019 by Assistant Attorneys General Ann MacNeille and Jeffrey Hochstetler. http://mgahouse.maryland.gov/mga/play/4bb8ac66-984b-4b29-b4d6-dfb9d517e0d2/?catalog/03e481c7-8a42-4438-a7da-93ff74bdaa4c
• Proactive Disclosure Saves Time and Money, and It’s the Law The central purpose of the Public Information Act (“PIA”) is to provide access to information about the affairs of government. To achieve this, the PIA requires agencies to disclose public records—that aren’t otherwise exempt—“with the least cost and least delay to the person or governmental unit that requests the inspection.” Md. Code, General Provisions Art. ...
• Records: City Performed 1 Corridor Inspection Since Collapse US News. January, 19, 2019
• Bill Seeks Independent Investigation Of Police-Involved Deaths Rockville Patch. 011619.
• ACLU seeks to reopen Salisbury MPIA case Maryland Daily Record. 010719
• PIA Technology Solutions: Maryland Insurance Administration’s PIA Web-Portal The Ombudsman’s Office has heard from various Maryland agencies that are interested in implementing technology to better manage PIA requests. These agencies state that they are committed to transparency and to identifying potential systems that can improve their PIA response. The Ombudsman’s Office is in the process of interviewing agencies that have already implemented such ...
• 2018 Recommendations to the General Assembly Each fall, the PIA Compliance Board (PIACB) submits a report to the General Assembly that includes information about its activities and recommendations for improvements to the Public Information Act (‘PIA”). In 2018, the PIACB submitted its third Annual Report, and for the second consecutive year invited the Public Access Ombudsman to provide a report on ...
• On Keeping Journalists Safe, and Public Documents Public Ombudsman participates in MDDC Press Association Panel Discussion. Jonathan Make. 10/23/18
• Judge rules Virginia’s judiciary not subject to FOIA FOIA in the news. The Roanoke Times. 10/22/18
• PIA Technology Solutions: HCPSS – Transparency in Public Schools The Ombudsman’s Office has heard from various Maryland agencies that are interested in implementing technology for managing PIA requests. These agencies state that they are committed to transparency and to identifying potential systems that can improve their PIA response. The Ombudsman’s Office is in the process of interviewing agencies that have already implemented PIA management ...
• Hagerstown declines to release body-camera footage in bail bondsman incident Herald-Mail Media. 9/7/18
• Court orders Salisbury to release police lawsuit records Delmarvanow.com. 8/22/18
• Privacy Beyond the Grave: Does the PIA Protect the Personnel Records of a Departed Employee? The Maryland Public Information Act (“PIA”) protects the confidentiality of personnel records. Md. Code Ann., General Provisions Article (“GP”), § 4-311(a) (2014, 2017 supp.). A personnel record includes “an application, a performance rating, or scholastic achievement information.” GP § 4-311(a). It also includes “those documents that directly pertain to employment and an employee’s ability to ...
• Maryland tightens access to sealed indictments — after leak to gang members in Anne Arundel Captital Gazette. 06/22/18
• Why Am I Being Charged? A Q&A Breakdown of Fees Agencies Charge for Maryland PIA Requests Maryland Public Information Act (PIA) fees are governed by section 4-206 of the PIA. An agency is allowed to charge a reasonable fee for the search for and preparation of requested records. Q. What is a reasonable fee? A. A “reasonable fee” is not a specific amount. Fees can range from $20 to thousands of dollars. ...
• MD high court weighs if MPIA requires disclosure of supervisor’s notes The Daily Record. 5/7/18