Classifying Drafts

Consideration 4: Does another statute govern access?

In every records access situation, GRAMA provides that when access to a record is governed or limited by some other statute, rule, or regulation, then access must be provided according to the specific requirements of that governing statute, rule, or regulation and the provisions of GRAMA apply only to the extent that they are not inconsistent with the alternate provision. (UC 63G-2-201(3)(b)) In the case of drafts, the Open and Public Meetings Act (OPMA, Utah Code 52-4) provides instruction for providing access to unapproved minutes. This statute governs access to draft minutes of open and public meetings.

In the Open and Public Meetings Act, “pending minutes” are defined as written minutes of open meetings that are in draft form. Since they have not been approved, they are subject to change. Pending minutes are declared to be public records with the additional requirement that, upon release, they must be marked with a clear label indicating that they are drafts not yet approved by the public body. (UC 52-4-203(a)(b)(c))

Possibly, other rules or statutes govern drafts in other specific circumstances. In all circumstances, it may be a good idea to follow the model of the OPMA and clearly label any draft that is released.

←Previous | Return to Ombudsman Page