HOUSE BILL NO. 2347 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE PROUDIE.
5688H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT To repeal section 610.026, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to the sunshine law.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 610.026, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu 2 thereof, to be known as section 610.026, to read as follows: 610.026. 1. Except as otherwise provided by law, each public governmental body 2 shall provide access to and, upon request, furnish copies of public records subject to the 3 following: 4 (1) Fees for copying public records, except those records restricted under section 5 32.091, shall not exceed ten cents per page for a paper copy not larger than nine by fourteen 6 inches, with the hourly fee for duplicating time not to exceed the average hourly rate of pay 7 for clerical staff of the public governmental body. Research time required for fulfilling 8 records requests may be charged at the actual cost of research time. Based on the scope of the 9 request, the public governmental body shall produce the copies using employees of the body 10 that result in the lowest amount of charges for search, research, and duplication time. Prior to 11 producing copies of the requested records, the person requesting the records may request the 12 public governmental body to provide an estimate of the cost to the person requesting the 13 records. Documents may be furnished without charge or at a reduced charge when the public 14 governmental body determines that waiver or reduction of the fee is in the public interest 15 because it is likely to contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations or 16 activities of the public governmental body and is not primarily in the commercial interest of 17 the requester;
EXPLANATION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is intended to be omitted from the law. Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language. HB 2347 2
18 (2) Fees for providing access to public records maintained on computer facilities, 19 recording tapes or disks, videotapes or films, pictures, maps, slides, graphics, illustrations or 20 similar audio or visual items or devices, and for paper copies larger than nine by fourteen 21 inches shall include only the cost of copies, staff time, which shall not exceed the average 22 hourly rate of pay for staff of the public governmental body required for making copies and 23 programming, if necessary, and the cost of the disk, tape, or other medium used for the 24 duplication. Fees for maps, blueprints, or plats that require special expertise to duplicate may 25 include the actual rate of compensation for the trained personnel required to duplicate such 26 maps, blueprints, or plats. If programming is required beyond the customary and usual level 27 to comply with a request for records or information, the fees for compliance may include the 28 actual costs of such programming; 29 (3) Members of the general assembly shall be exempt from paying all fees in 30 subdivisions (1) and (2) of this subsection, except that a public governmental body may 31 impose a fee for the material cost of paper copies or records if paper copies are 32 requested. 33 2. (1) Payment of fees may be requested prior to fulfilling the request. 34 (2) A request for public records to a public governmental body shall be considered 35 withdrawn if the requester fails to remit all fees within ninety days, or within one hundred 36 fifty days if the requested fees are greater than one thousand dollars, of a request for payment 37 of the fees by the public governmental body, prior to fulfilling the request. The public 38 governmental body shall include notice to the requester that if the requester fails to remit 39 payment of the fees within ninety days, or within one hundred fifty days if the requested fees 40 are greater than one thousand dollars, then the request for public records shall be considered 41 withdrawn. If the public governmental body responds to a request for public records in order 42 to seek a clarification of the request and no response to the request for clarification is received 43 by the public governmental body within ninety days, or within one hundred fifty days if the 44 requested fees are greater than one thousand dollars, of sending the request for clarification, 45 then such request for public records shall be considered withdrawn. The request for 46 clarification by the public governmental body shall include notice to the requester that if the 47 requester fails to respond within ninety days, or within one hundred fifty days if the requested 48 fees are greater than one thousand dollars, then the request shall be considered withdrawn. If 49 the same or a substantially similar request for public records is made within six months after 50 the expiration of the ninety-day period, or within one hundred fifty days if the requested fees 51 are greater than one thousand dollars, and no fee was remitted for such request or no response 52 was received to the request for clarification, then the public governmental body may request 53 payment of the same fees made for the original request that has expired in addition to any 54 allowable fees necessary to fulfill the subsequent request. Any request for records to a public HB 2347 3
55 governmental body that is pending on August 28, 2025, shall be considered withdrawn if the 56 requester fails to remit all fees by January 1, 2026. The provisions of this subdivision shall 57 not apply if a lawsuit has been filed against the public governmental body with regard to the 58 records that are the subject of the request under this subdivision. 59 3. Except as otherwise provided by law, each public governmental body of the state 60 shall remit all moneys received by or for it from fees charged pursuant to this section to the 61 director of revenue for deposit to the general revenue fund of the state. 62 4. Except as otherwise provided by law, each public governmental body of a political 63 subdivision of the state shall remit all moneys received by it or for it from fees charged 64 pursuant to sections 610.010 to 610.028 to the appropriate fiscal officer of such political 65 subdivision for deposit to the governmental body's accounts. 66 5. The term "tax, license or fees" as used in Section 22 of Article X of the 67 Constitution of the State of Missouri does not include copying charges and related fees that do 68 not exceed the level necessary to pay or to continue to pay the costs for providing a service, 69 program, or activity which was in existence on November 4, 1980, or which was approved by 70 a vote of the people subsequent to November 4, 1980. ✔
Statutes affected: