THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
Sec. 1-210. (Formerly Sec. 1-19). Access
to public records. Exempt records.
(a) Except as
otherwise provided by any federal law or state statute, all records maintained
or kept on file by any public agency, whether or not such records are required
by any law or by any rule or regulation, shall be public records and every
person shall have the right to inspect such records promptly during regular
office or business hours or to receive a copy of such records in accordance with
the provisions of section 1-212. Any
agency rule or regulation, or part thereof, that conflicts with the provisions
of this subsection or diminishes or curtails in any way the rights granted by
this subsection shall be void. Each
such agency shall keep and maintain all public records in its custody at its
regular office or place of business in an accessible place and, if there is no
such office or place of business, the public records pertaining to such agency
shall be kept in the office of the clerk of the political subdivision in which
such public agency is located or of the Secretary of the State, as the case may
be. Any certified record hereunder
attested as a true copy by the clerk, chief or deputy of such agency or by such
other person designated or empowered by law to so act, shall be competent
evidence in any court of this state of the facts contained therein.
Each such agency shall make, keep and maintain a record of the
proceedings of its meetings.
(b) Nothing in the Freedom
of Information Act shall be construed to require disclosure of:
(1) Preliminary drafts or notes provided the public agency has
determined that the public interest in withholding such documents clearly
outweighs the public interest in disclosure;
(2) Personnel or medical files and similar files the disclosure
of which would constitute an invasion of personal privacy;
(3) Records of law enforcement agencies not otherwise available
to the public which records were compiled in connection with the detection or
investigation of crime, if the disclosure of said records would not be in the
public interest because it would result in the disclosure of (A) the identity of
informants not otherwise known or the identity of witnesses not otherwise known
whose safety would be endangered or who would be subject to threat or
intimidation if their identity was made known, (B) signed statements of
witnesses, (C) information to be used in a prospective law enforcement action if
prejudicial to such action, (D) investigatory techniques not otherwise known to
the general public, (E) arrest records of a juvenile, which shall also include
any investigatory files, concerning the arrest of such juvenile, compiled for
law enforcement purposes, (F) the name and address of the victim of a sexual
assault under section 53a-70, 53a-70a, 53a-71, 53a-72a, 53a-72b or 53a-73a, or
injury or risk of injury, or impairing of morals under section 53-21, or of an
attempt thereof or (G) uncorroborated allegations subject to destruction
pursuant to section 1-216;
(4) Records pertaining to strategy and negotiations with respect
to pending claims or pending litigation to which the public agency is a party
until such litigation or claim has been finally adjudicated or otherwise
settled;
(5) (A) Trade secrets, which for purposes of the Freedom of Information Act, are defined as information, including formulas, patterns, compilations, programs, devices, methods, techniques, processes, drawings, cost data, or customer lists that (i) derive independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally known to, and not being readily ascertainable by proper means by, other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use, and (ii) are the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain secrecy; and
(B) commercial or financial information given in confidence,
not required by statute;
(6) Test questions, scoring keys and other examination data used
to administer a licensing examination, examination for employment or academic
examinations;
(7) The contents of real estate appraisals, engineering or
feasibility estimates and evaluations made for or by an agency relative to the
acquisition of property or to prospective public supply and construction
contracts, until such time as all of the property has been acquired or all
proceedings or transactions have been terminated or abandoned, provided the law
of eminent domain shall not be affected by this provision;
(8) Statements of personal worth or personal financial data
required by a licensing agency and filed by an applicant with such licensing
agency to establish the applicant’s personal qualification for the license,
certificate or permit applied for;
(9) Records, reports and statements of strategy or negotiations
with respect to collective bargaining;
(10) Records, tax returns, reports and statements exempted by
federal law or state statutes or communications privileged by the
attorney-client relationship;
(11) Names or addresses of students enrolled in any public school
or college without the consent of each student whose name or address is to be
disclosed who is eighteen years of age or older and a parent or guardian of each
such student who is younger than eighteen years of age, provided this
subdivision shall not be construed as prohibiting the disclosure of the names or
addresses of students enrolled in any public school in a regional school
district to the board of selectmen or town board of finance, as the case may be,
of the town wherein the student resides for the purpose of verifying tuition
payments made to such school;
(12) Any information obtained by the use of illegal means;
(13) Records of an investigation or the name of an employee
providing information under the provisions of section 4-61dd;
(14) Adoption records and information provided for in sections
45a-746, 45a-750 and 45a-751;
(15) Any page of a primary petition, nominating petition,
referendum petition, or petition for a town meeting submitted under any
provision of the general statutes or of any special act, municipal charter or
ordinance, until the required processing and certification of such page has been
completed by the official or officials charged with such duty after which time
disclosure of such page shall be required;
(16) Records of complaints, including information compiled in the
investigation thereof, brought to a municipal health authority pursuant to
chapter 368e or a district department of health pursuant to chapter 368f, until
such time as the investigation is concluded or thirty days from the date of
receipt of the complaint, whichever occurs first;
(17) Educational
records which are not subject to disclosure under the Family Educational Rights
and Privacy Act, 20 USC 1232g;
(18) Records, the disclosure of which the Commissioner of Correction, or as it applies to Whiting Forensic Division facilities of the Connecticut Valley Hospital, the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services, has reasonable grounds to believe may result in a safety risk, including the risk of harm to any person or the risk of an escape from, or a disorder in, a correctional institution or facility under the supervision of the Department of Correction or Whiting Forensic Division facilities. Such records shall include, but are not limited to:
(A) Security manuals, including emergency plans contained or referred to in such security manuals;
(B) Engineering and architectural drawings of correctional institutions or facilities or Whiting Forensic Division facilities;
(C) Operational specifications of security systems utilized by the Department of Correction at any correctional institution or facility, or Whiting Forensic Division facilities, except that a general description of any such security system and the cost and quality of such system may be disclosed;
(D) Training manuals prepared for correctional institutions and facilities or Whiting Forensic Division facilities that describe, in any manner, security procedures, emergency plans or security equipment;
(E) Internal security audits of correctional institutions and facilities or Whiting Forensic Division facilities;
(F) Minutes or recordings of staff meetings of the Department of Correction or Whiting Forensic Division facilities, or portions of such minutes or recordings, that contain or reveal information relating to security or other records otherwise exempt from disclosure under this subdivision;
(G) Logs or other documents that contain information on the movement or assignment of inmates or staff at correctional institutions or facilities; and
(H) Records that contain information on contacts between inmates, as defined in section 18-84, and law enforcement officers;
(19) Records, the disclosure of which the Commissioner of Public Works or, in the case of records concerning Judicial Department facilities, the Chief Court Administrator, has reasonable grounds to believe may result in a safety risk, including the risk of harm to any person, any state-owned or leased institution or facility or any fixture or appurtenance and equipment attached to, or contained in, such institution or facility. Such records shall include, but are not limited to:
(A) Security manuals or reports, including emergency plans contained or referred to in such security manuals;
(B) Engineering and architectural drawings of state-owned or leased institutions or facilities;
(C) Operational specifications of security systems utilized at any state-owned or leased institution or facility, except that a general description of any such security system and the cost and quality of such system, may be disclosed;
(D) Training manuals prepared for state-owned or leased institutions or facilities that describe, in any manner, security procedures, emergency plans or security equipment;
(E) Internal security audits of state-owned or leased institutions or facilities;
(F) Minutes or recordings of meetings of the Department of Public Works or the Judicial Department, or portions of such minutes or recordings, that contain or reveal information relating to security or other records otherwise exempt from disclosure under this subdivision; and
(G) Logs or other documents that contain information on the movement or assignment of security personnel at state-owned or leased institutions or facilities; and
(20) Records of standards, procedures, processes, software and codes, not otherwise available to the public, the disclosure of which would compromise the security or integrity of an information technology system.
(c) Whenever a public agency receives a request from any person confined in a correctional institution or facility or a Whiting Forensic Division facility, for disclosure of any public record under the Freedom of Information Act, the public agency shall promptly notify the Commissioner of Correction or the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the case of a person confined in a Whiting Forensic Division facility, of such request, in the manner prescribed by the commissioner, before complying with the request as required by the Freedom of Information Act. If the commissioner believes the requested record is exempt from disclosure pursuant to subdivision (18) of subsection (b) of this section, the commissioner may withhold such record from such person when the record is delivered to the person's correctional institution or facility or Whiting Forensic Division facility.
(d) Whenever a public agency, except the Judicial Department, receives a request from any person for disclosure of any records described in subdivision (19) of subsection (b) of this section under the Freedom of Information Act, the public agency shall promptly notify the Commissioner of Public Works of such request, in the manner prescribed by the commissioner, before complying with the request as required by the Freedom of Information Act. If the commissioner believes the requested record is exempt from disclosure pursuant to subdivision (19) of subsection (b) of this section, the commissioner may direct the agency to withhold such record from such person. In any appeal brought under the provisions of section 1-206 of the Freedom of Information Act for denial of access to records for any of the reasons described in subdivision (19) of subsection (b) of this section, such appeal shall be against the Commissioner of Public Works, exclusively, or, in the case of records concerning Judicial Department facilities, the Chief Court Administrator.
(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions (1) and (16)
of subsection (b) of this section, disclosure shall be required of:
(1) Interagency or intra-agency memoranda or letters, advisory
opinions, recommendations or any report comprising part of the process by which
governmental decisions and policies are formulated, except disclosure shall not
be required of a preliminary draft of a memorandum, prepared by a member of the
staff of a public agency, which is subject to revision prior to submission to or
discussion among the members of such agency;
(2) All records of investigation conducted with respect to any tenement house, lodging house or boarding house as defined in section 19a-355, or any nursing home, residential care home or rest home, as defined in section 19a-490, by any municipal building department or housing code inspection department, any local or district health department, or any other department charged with the enforcement of ordinances or laws regulating the erection, construction, alteration, maintenance, sanitation, ventilation or occupancy of such buildings; and
(3) The names of firms obtaining bid documents from any state agency. (P.A. 57-428, §1; P.A. 63-260; P.A. 67-723, §1; P.A. 69-193; P.A. 71-193; P.A. 75-342, §2; P.A. 76-294; P.A. 77-609, §2; P.A. 79-119; P.A. 79-324; P.A. 79-575, §2; P.A. 79-599, §3; P.A. 80-483, §1; P.A. 81-40, §2; P.A. 81-431, §1; P.A. 81-448, §2; P.A. 83-436; P.A. 84-112, §1; P.A. 84-311, §2; P.A. 85-577, §22; P.A. 90-335, §1; P.A. 91-140, §2; P.A. 94-246, §14; P.A. 95-233; P.A. 96-130, §37; P.A. 97-47, §4; P.A. 97-112, §2; P.A. 97-293, §14; P.A. 99-156, §1; P.A. 00-66, §5; P.A. 00-69, §3; P.A. 00-134, §1; P.A. 00-136, §2; June Sp. Sess., P.A. 00-1, §20).