Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021 My Fellow Ohioans, State law gives citizens the right to look behind the scenes of government and check that public servants are not making decisions expressly to benefit friends or donors — or themselves. I can’t think of a better time to emphasize accountability and issue this 2021 Sunshine Laws Manual. My office compiled the one-stop explainer on Ohio’s Public Records and Open Meetings Acts, including law changes and legal decisions made since the previous edition. The manual can assist both Ohioans seeking answers and public servants responding to such requests. (Note that it should serve as general guidance, not a substitute for legal advice.) To further promote open government, my office’s Public Records Unit: • Partners with the Auditor of State’s Office to offer free Sunshine Laws trainings, which are open to anyone and fulfill a once-per-term legal obligation for public officials. The sessions are currently online-only, given COVID-19 concerns, but they usually are offered at locations throughout Ohio. • Created a model public-records policy for local governments to use as a guide when writing their own policies. This resource and more are available at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Sunshine. As a former state auditor, county prosecutor and newspaper reporter, I have spent my career fighting for transparency. I’m proud to continue that tradition as attorney general and commend your interest. Government of, by and for the people — not hidden from the people — must be more than mere words written in a history book. It doesn’t happen unless we make it so. Yours, Dave Yost Attorney General Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021: An Open Government Resource Manual iii Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021 Readers may find the latest edition of this publication and the most updated public records and open meetings laws by visiting the following web sites. To request additional paper copies of this publication, contact: Ohio Attorney General Public Records Unit Re: Sunshine Manual Request 30 E. Broad St., 16th Floor Columbus, Ohio 43215 (800) 282-0515 or (614) 466-2872 www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/Sunshine or Ohio Auditor of State Open Government Unit Legal Division 88 E. Broad St., 9th Floor Columbus, Ohio 43215 (800) 282-0370 or (614) 466-4514 www.OhioAuditor.gov We welcome your comments and suggestions. Acknowledgments Warm thanks to the employees of the Ohio Attorney General whose contributions have made this publication possible over the years, with special recognition to the authors and editors of this edition: Ohio Attorney General’s Public Records Unit: Assistant Attorneys General: Bridget Coontz, Heather L. Buchanan, Ann Yackshaw, Michael A. Walton, and Zachary M. Holscher Administrative Staff: MacKenzie S. Clayton Records Manager: Nathan Owens Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021: An Open Government Resource Manual iv Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS Glossary ......................................................................................................................................................... x Overview of the Ohio Public Records Act ..................................................................................................... 1 I. Chapter One: Public Records Defined ............................................................ 2 A. What Is a “Public Office”? ............................................................................................................... 2 1. Statutory definition – R.C. 149.011(A) ...................................................................................... 2 2. Private entities can be “public offices” ..................................................................................... 2 3. Quasi-agency – A private entity, even if not a “public office,” can be “a person responsible for public records” ..................................................................................... 3 4. Public office is responsible for its own records ......................................................................... 3 B. What are “records”? ....................................................................................................................... 3 1. Statutory definition – R.C. 149.011(G) ...................................................................................... 3 2. Records and non-records .......................................................................................................... 3 3. The effect of “actual use” .......................................................................................................... 4 4. “Is this item a record?” – Some common applications ............................................................. 5 a. Email ................................................................................................................................... 5 b. Notes ................................................................................................................................... 5 c. Drafts .................................................................................................................................. 5 d. Electronic database contents ............................................................................................. 5 C. What is a “public record”? .............................................................................................................. 6 1. Statutory definition – R.C. 149.43(A)(1): “Public record” means records kept by any public office .................................................................................................................... 6 2. What “kept by” means .............................................................................................................. 6 D. Exemptions ...................................................................................................................................... 6 II. Chapter Two: Requesting Public Records ..................................................... 11 A. Rights and Obligations of Public Records Requesters and Public Offices ................................... 11 1. Organization and maintenance of public records ................................................................... 11 2. “Any person” may make a request ......................................................................................... 11 3. The request must be for the public office’s existing records .................................................. 12 4. A request must be specific enough for the public office to reasonably identify responsive records ..................................................................................................... 12 5. Denying, and then clarifying, an ambiguous or overly broad request .................................... 14 6. Unless a specific law provides otherwise, requests can be for any purpose, and need not identify the requester or be made in writing ................................................... 14 7. Optional negotiation when identity, purpose, or request in writing would assist identifying, locating, or delivering requested records .................................................. 14 8. Requester can choose media on which copies are made ....................................................... 14 9. Requester can choose pick-up, delivery, or transmission of copies; public office may charge delivery costs ............................................................................................. 15 10. Prompt inspection, or copies within a reasonable period of time .......................................... 15 11. Inspection at no cost during regular business hours .............................................................. 16 12. Copies, and delivery or transmission, “at cost” ...................................................................... 16 13. What responsive documents can the public office withhold? ................................................ 16 a. Duty to withhold certain records ...................................................................................... 16 b. Option to withhold or release certain records ................................................................. 16 c. No duty to release non-records ........................................................................................ 16 14. Denial of a request, redaction, and a public office’s duties of notice ..................................... 17 a. Redaction – statutory definition ....................................................................................... 17 Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021: An Open Government Resource Manual v Ohio Sunshine Laws 2021 b. Requirement to notify of and explain redactions and withholding of records .............................................................................................................................. 17 c. No obligation to respond to duplicate request ................................................................ 17 d. No waiver of unasserted, applicable exemptions............................................................. 17 15. Burden or expense of compliance ........................................................................................... 18 B. Statutes that Modify General Rights and Duties ......................................................................... 18 1. Particular records ...................................................................................................................