The U.S. state of Utah has done a fast reversal, repealing a heavily criticized law that would have restricted public access to some government records.
Gov. Gary Herbert signed the repeal bill March 30, and a special committee has began work on redrafting the original legislation, which was hastily passed. (See previous FreedomInfo.org report.)
Open government groups had been unable to prevent passage of the bill, which would have protected electronic messages from public release and allowed for higher fees to process requests. See an account of the governor’s action was reported in The Salt Lake Tribune.
A 25-member working group has started deliberating on a new bill. It is made up of legislators, media representatives and the public. The Daily Herald, reporting on the group’s second meeting March 30, said that the group has no deadline.
Filed under: What's New