URGENT! Egregious OH bill threatens public access]

["Hamaker, Chuck" <cahamake@email.uncc.edu>]

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Fwd: Fwd: URGENT!  Egregious OH bill threatens public access
Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 09:47:15 -0700 (PDT)
From: martin@skmassociates.net
Reply-To: SCHOLCOMM@ala.org
To: "ACRL Scholarly Communication T.F." <SCHOLCOMM@ala.org>

Please excuse any duplication.  Librarians in Ohio will want to contact
their state legislators immediately regarding this bill.  Others will need
to look out for the possible introduction of similar legislation in their
own states.

Thanks for taking action in this effort.

Sue Martin
Visiting Program Officer for Scholarly Communication
Association of College and Research Libraries

------- Start of forwarded message -------

>>> Mary Alice Baish <baish@law.georgetown.edu> 04/21/03 06:57PM >>>

Friends,

I just learned from law librarians in Ohio about an immediate legislative
crisis there.  H.B. 145, the Electronic Government Services Act, would
prevent state agencies from providing access to information. It has been
added to the budget bill which has already passed the House.

This is model legislation promoted by a group called ALEC (American
Legislative Exchange Council, www.alec.org)  that was introduced last year
in a handful of states, including Ohio, and was successfully stopped.

H.B. 145 is now an add on to the budget bill, H.B. 95.  It prohibits a
state government agency from providing information if there are two or
more competing private enterprises providing those services. That would
mean that a government agency would not be allowed to post its regulations
or decision on its Web site if, for example, Lexis, WestLaw, or other
companies offer that information for sale.

This year's version of the bill exempts the Ohio Supreme Court and
Legislature where much of the opposition last year focused. However, state
agencies would be impacted by the legislation and agency information that
is now available at no cost on agency Web sites will likely disappear if
HB 145 is enacted.

Here's a link to the bill:
http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=125_HB_145 

Section 1306.20 Paragraph (I) defines "state agency" as "every organized
body, office, or agency established by the laws of the state for the
exercise of any function of state government, but does not include the
general assembly, any legislative agency, the supreme court, the other
courts of record in this state, or any judicial agency."

Section 1306.25 (E)(1) further includes under "state agency" "similar
agency of a county, township, municipal corporation, or other political
subdivision,..." It then substantially limits their ability to publish
electronically. While H.B. 145 is not as onerous as the previously
withdrawn H.B. 482 of last year, it is a huge threat to public access.

This bill threatens the right of residents in Ohio from accessing state
government information, created with their tax dollars, at no cost through
the Internet.  It is an abhorrent model that must be stopped short.  
Please get involved, especially if you have members in Ohio who can
respond immediately to this serious threat.

Thanks,
Mary Alice Baish
American Association of Law Libraries
Associate Washington Affairs Representative