Minnesota Data Practices Act

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Contents

State sunshine
State laws
How to ask for records
Transparency headlines
Statutory changes
Notable FOIA requests
State sunshine lawsuits
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E-mail access
Private agency, public dollars
The WikiFOIA portal

The Minnesota Data Practices Act is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of government bodies at all levels in Minnesota.

The Minnesota Open Meeting Law legislates the methods by which public meetings are conducted.

Minnesota's transparency report card

A 2008 study, BGA - Alper Integrity Index, conducted by the Better Government Association and sponsored by Alper Services, ranked Minnesota #15 in the nation with an overall percentage of 57.30%. [1]

A 2007 study, Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, conducted by BGA and the NFOIC, gave Minnesota 53 points out of a possible 100, a letter grade of "F", and a ranking of 21 out of the 50 states.[2]

A 2002 study, Freedom of Information in the USA, conducted by IRE and BGA, ranked Minnesota's law as the 40th worst in the country, giving it a letter grade of "D".[3]

Public Records

The Minnesota Data Practices Act "establishes a presumption that government data are public and are accessible by the public for both inspection and copying unless there is federal law, a state statute, or a temporary classification of data that provides that certain data are not public."[4]

Open Meetings

"All meetings, including executive sessions, must be open to the public"[5]

Who May Request Minnesota Records?

Anyone may request public records in Minnesota. They are also entitled to have the data explained to them if they don't understand it. A "person shall be permitted to inspect and copy public government data". [6]

For requester residency requirements in other states, see the list of who can make public record requests by state.

See also

External Links

References

  1. ↑ Integrity Index available for download here
  2. ↑ Graded state responsiveness to FOI requests, 2007
  3. ↑ Freedom of Information in the USA, 2002
  4. ↑ Minnesota Statutes, 13.01
  5. ↑ Minnesota Statutes, 13D.01
  6. ↑ Minnesota Statutes, 13.03(a)
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