Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

0832.01000
     Sixty-eighth
     Legislative Assembly                    SENATE BILL NO. 2232
     of North Dakota
     Introduced by
       Senators Luick, Larson
       Representative Strinden
  A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new subsection to section 44-04-18.7 of the North
  Dakota Century Code, relating to exempting crime scene images of minors; and to amend and
  reenact section 44-04-06, subsection 5 of section 44-04-19.1, subsection 4 of section 44-04-20,
  and subsection 1 of section 44-04-21.1 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to law
  violations and open record and open meeting laws.
  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF NORTH DAKOTA:
      SECTION 1. AMENDMENT. Section 44-04-06 of the North Dakota Century Code is
  amended and reenacted as follows:
      44-04-06. Peace officers to report law violations.
     The state's attorney, assistant state's attorney, sheriff, deputy sheriff, or peace officer of any
 county, township, city in this state, having any evidence, knowledge, or notice of any violation of
 any liquor, gambling, cigarette, snuff, pool hall, bawdyhouse, prostitution, white slave, or
 habit-forming drug laws of North Dakota shall investigate and seek evidence of the violation and
 the names of witnesses by whom the violation may be proved. AnyA peace officer shall report
 the information to the state's attorney of the county in which the violation occurs and shall assist
 the state's attorney in the prosecution of the violators of said laws.
     SECTION 2. A new subsection to section 44-04-18.7 of the North Dakota Century Code is
 created and enacted as follows:
          Unless otherwise provided by law, a description of a crime scene image that includes
          a minor or a minor victim is an exempt record.
     SECTION 3. AMENDMENT. Subsection 5 of section 44-04-19.1 of the North Dakota
 Century Code is amended and reenacted as follows:
     5.   "Attorney consultation" means any discussion between the members of a governing
          body and its attorney in instances in which the governing body seeks or receives the
                                                Page No. 1                          23.0832.01000
     Sixty-eighth
     Legislative Assembly
           attorney's advice regarding and in anticipation of reasonably predictable or pending
           civil or criminal litigation or adversarial administrative proceedings or to receive its
           attorney's advice and guidance on the legal risks, strengths, and weaknesses of an
           action of a public entity which, if held in public, would have an adverse fiscal effect on
           the entity. All other discussions beyond the attorney's advice and guidance must be
           made in the open, unless otherwise provided by law. A statement made by a
           participant or between participants during an executive session held for the purpose of
           attorney consultation is exempt if the statement relates to the subject for which
           attorney consultation was established. Mere presence or participation of an attorney at
          a meeting is not sufficient to constitute attorney consultation.
    SECTION 4. AMENDMENT. Subsection 4 of section 44-04-20 of the North Dakota Century
 Code is amended and reenacted as follows:
     4.   The notice required in this section must be posted at the principal office of the
          governing body holding the meeting, if such exists, and at the location of the meeting
          on the day of the meeting. In addition, unless all the information contained in the
          notice was previously filed with the appropriate office under subsection 3, the notice
          must be filed in the office of the secretary of state for state-level bodies or for public
          entities defined in subdivision c of subsection 13 of section 44-04-17.1, the city auditor
          or designee of the city for city-level bodies, the county auditor or designee of the
          county for all other bodies, or. If the public entity has a website, notice also must be
          posted on the public entity's website. This subsection does not apply to meetings of
          the legislative assembly or any committee thereof.
    SECTION 5. AMENDMENT. Subsection 1 of section 44-04-21.1 of the North Dakota
 Century Code is amended and reenacted as follows:
     1.   Any interested person may request an attorney general's opinion to review a written
          denial of a request for records under section 44-04-18, a denial of access to a meeting
          under section 44-04-19, or other alleged violation of section 44-04-18, 44-04-19,
          44-04-19.2, 44-04-20, or 44-04-21 by any public entity other than the legislative
          assembly or any committee thereof. A request made under this section must be made
          within thirty days of the alleged violation, except that a request based on allegations
          that a meeting occurred without the notice required by section 44-04-20, must be
                                               Page No. 2                          23.0832.01000
     Sixty-eighth
     Legislative Assembly
          made within ninety days of the alleged violation. In preparing an opinion under this
          section, the attorney general has discretion to obtain and review a recording made
          under section 44-04-19.2. The attorney general may request and obtain information
          claimed to be exempt or confidential for the purpose of determining whether the
          information is exempt or confidential. Any such information may not be released by the
          attorney general and may be returned to the provider of the information. The attorney
          general shall issue to the public entity involved an opinion on the alleged violation,
          which may be a summary opinion, unless the request is withdrawn by the person
          requesting the opinion or a civil action has been filed involving the possible violation.
         The attorney general may decline to issue an opinion if the person requesting the
         opinion has made more than one request within the last thirty days or more than five
         requests for opinions in twelve months. If the request pertains to a public entity as
         defined in subdivision c of subsection 13 of section 44-04-17.1, the opinion must be
         issued to the public entity providing the public funds. In any opinion issued under this
         section, the attorney general shall base the opinion on the facts given by the public
         entity.
                                             Page No. 3                          23.0832.01000
Statutes affected: 
INTRODUCED: 44-04-06, 44-04-19.1, 44-04-20, 44-04-21.1
FIRST ENGROSSMENT: 44-04-06, 44-04-19.1, 44-04-20, 44-04-21.1
Enrollment: 44-04-06, 44-04-19.1, 44-04-20, 44-04-21.1