Classifying Drafts

Consideration 2: Is the draft a protected record?

If a draft is a record, it may be classified as protected. GRAMA states:

The following records are protected if properly classified...: (22) drafts, unless otherwise classified as public. 63G-2-305(22)

Based on this classification statement, protected is the appropriate default classification for drafts. As a protected record a draft could be provided to the person who submitted the record, an individual who has power of attorney or notarized release from all parties whose interests are sought to be protected, or someone with a court order or legislative subpoena. (UC 63G-2-202(4))

Drafts normally are protected in order to prevent confusion and protect the decision-making processes. As updates are being made, corrections to content and editorial changes can be considered within the governmental entity while work is in progress without concern that a superseded record that was made accessible to the public will become confused with a final record. Much like an investigation or audit, the record creation process should be protected until that process is complete. The following table shows instances in which the State Records Committee made determinations that drafts are appropriately classified as protected.

State Records Committee hearings: Drafts that are protected

Hearing	Description of draft claimed to be protected because of status as a draft.	Committee’s decision
4-Mar	Draft of settlement decree and draft of press release	Properly classified as protected
14-Apr	Draft planning-commission minutes	Properly classified as protected; were not relied on to carry out any action or policy
6-Jun	Draft dismissal letter	Properly classified as protected
12-Sep	Drafts, notes and similar materials associated with evaluating a policy or plan	Properly classified as protected because it is a draft
15-Sep	Drafts of pleadings	Properly classified as protected
12-Oct	Draft documents maintained in the tax appraiser’s file; used by appraiser in analysis of subject property	Drafts should be classified as public records because records regarding tax status of real property are public
11-Oct	Email (some among many)	Properly classified as protected because it is a draft
12-Nov	Copies of communications regarding a particular topic	Of numerous documents some were properly classified as protected because they were drafts
14-16	External auditor’s draft report	Because draft was not circulated or finalized or relied on to carry out any action or policy its classification is protected
15-16	Draft of investigation report	Properly classified as protected

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