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U.S. Code as of:
01/03/05
Section 552b. Open meetings
(a) For purposes of this section -
(1) the term "agency" means any agency, as defined in section
552(e) (!1) of this title, headed by a collegial body composed of
two or more individual members, a majority of whom are appointed
to such position by the President with the advice and consent of
the Senate, and any subdivision thereof authorized to act on
behalf of the agency;
(2) the term "meeting" means the deliberations of at least the
number of individual agency members required to take action on
behalf of the agency where such deliberations determine or result
in the joint conduct or disposition of official agency business,
but does not include deliberations required or permitted by
subsection (d) or (e); and
(3) the term "member" means an individual who belongs to a
collegial body heading an agency.
(b) Members shall not jointly conduct or dispose of agency
business other than in accordance with this section. Except as
provided in subsection (c), every portion of every meeting of an
agency shall be open to public observation.
(c) Except in a case where the agency finds that the public
interest requires otherwise, the second sentence of subsection (b)
shall not apply to any portion of an agency meeting, and the
requirements of subsections (d) and (e) shall not apply to any
information pertaining to such meeting otherwise required by this
section to be disclosed to the public, where the agency properly
determines that such portion or portions of its meeting or the
disclosure of such information is likely to -
(1) disclose matters that are (A) specifically authorized under
criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in
the interests of national defense or foreign policy and (B) in
fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order;
(2) relate solely to the internal personnel rules and practices
of an agency;
(3) disclose matters specifically exempted from disclosure by
statute (other than section 552 of this title), provided that
such statute (A) requires that the matters be withheld from the
public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue,
or (B) establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers
to particular types of matters to be withheld;
(4) disclose trade secrets and commercial or financial
information obtained from a person and privileged or
confidential;
(5) involve accusing any person of a crime, or formally
censuring any person;
(6) disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure
would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal
privacy;
(7) disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement
purposes, or information which if written would be contained in
such records, but only to the extent that the production of such
records or information would (A) interfere with enforcement
proceedings, (B) deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or
an impartial adjudication, (C) constitute an unwarranted invasion
of personal privacy, (D) disclose the identity of a confidential
source and, in the case of a record compiled by a criminal law
enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation,
or by an agency conducting a lawful national security
intelligence investigation, confidential information furnished
only by the confidential source, (E) disclose investigative
techniques and procedures, or (F) endanger the life or physical
safety of law enforcement personnel;
(8) disclose information contained in or related to
examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on
behalf of, or for the use of an agency responsible for the
regulation or supervision of financial institutions;
(9) disclose information the premature disclosure of which
would -
(A) in the case of an agency which regulates currencies,
securities, commodities, or financial institutions, be likely
to (i) lead to significant financial speculation in currencies,
securities, or commodities, or (ii) significantly endanger the
stability of any financial institution; or
(B) in the case of any agency, be likely to significantly
frustrate implementation of a proposed agency action,
except that subparagraph (B) shall not apply in any instance
where the agency has already disclosed to the public the content
or nature of its proposed action, or where the agency is required
by law to make such disclosure on its own initiative prior to
taking final agency action on such proposal; or
(10) specifically concern the agency's issuance of a subpena,
or the agency's participation in a civil action or proceeding, an
action in a foreign court or international tribunal, or an
arbitration, or the initiation, conduct, or disposition by the
agency of a particular case of formal agency adjudication
pursuant to the procedures in section 554 of this title or
otherwise involving a determination on the record after
opportunity for a hearing.
(d)(1) Action under subsection (c) shall be taken only when a
majority of the entire membership of the agency (as defined in
subsection (a)(1)) votes to take such action. A separate vote of
the agency members shall be taken with respect to each agency
meeting a portion or portions of which are proposed to be closed to
the public pursuant to subsection (c), or with respect to any
information which is proposed to be withheld under subsection (c).
A single vote may be taken with respect to a series of meetings, a
portion or portions of which are proposed to be closed to the
public, or with respect to any information concerning such series
of meetings, so long as each meeting in such series involves the
same particular matters and is scheduled to be held no more than
thirty days after the initial meeting in such series. The vote of
each agency member participating in such vote shall be recorded and
no proxies shall be allowed.
(2) Whenever any person whose interests may be directly affected
by a portion of a meeting requests that the agency close such
portion to the public for any of the reasons referred to in
paragraph (5), (6), or (7) of subsection (c), the agency, upon
request of any one of its members, shall vote by recorded vote
whether to close such meeting.
(3) Within one day of any vote taken pursuant to paragraph (1) or
(2), the agency shall make publicly available a written copy of
such vote reflecting the vote of each member on the question. If a
portion of a meeting is to be closed to the public, the agency
shall, within one day of the vote taken pursuant to paragraph (1)
or (2) of this subsection, make publicly available a full written
explanation of its action closing the portion together with a list
of all persons expected to attend the meeting and their
affiliation.
(4) Any agency, a majority of whose meetings may properly be
closed to the public pursuant to paragraph (4), (8), (9)(A), or
(10) of subsection (c), or any combination thereof, may provide by
regulation for the closing of such meetings or portions thereof in
the event that a majority of the members of the agency votes by
recorded vote at the beginning of such meeting, or portion thereof,
to close the exempt portion or portions of the meeting, and a copy
of such vote, reflecting the vote of each member on the question,
is made available to the public. The provisions of paragraphs (1),
(2), and (3) of this subsection and subsection (e) shall not apply
to any portion of a meeting to which such regulations apply:
Provided, That the agency shall, except to the extent that such
information is exempt from disclosure under the provisions of
subsection (c), provide the public with public announcement of the
time, place, and subject matter of the meeting and of each portion
thereof at the earliest practicable time.
(e)(1) In the case of each meeting, the agency shall make public
announcement, at least one week before the meeting, of the time,
place, and subject matter of the meeting, whether it is to be open
or closed to the public, and the name and phone number of the
official designated by the agency to respond to requests for
information about the meeting. Such announcement shall be made
unless a majority of the members of the agency determines by a
recorded vote that agency business requires that such meeting be
called at an earlier date, in which case the agency shall make
public announcement of the time, place, and subject matter of such
meeting, and whether open or closed to the public, at the earliest
practicable time.
(2) The time or place of a meeting may be changed following the
public announcement required by paragraph (1) only if the agency
publicly announces such change at the earliest practicable time.
The subject matter of a meeting, or the determination of the agency
to open or close a meeting, or portion of a meeting, to the public,
may be changed following the public announcement required by this
subsection only if (A) a majority of the entire membership of the
agency determines by a recorded vote that agency business so
requires and that no earlier announcement of the change was
possible, and (B) the agency publicly announces such change and the
vote of each member upon such change at the earliest practicable
time.
(3) Immediately following each public announcement required by
this subsection, notice of the time, place, and subject matter of a
meeting, whether the meeting is open or closed, any change in one
of the preceding, and the name and phone number of the official
designated by the agency to respond to requests for information
about the meeting, shall also be submitted for publication in the
Federal Register.
(f)(1) For every meeting closed pursuant to paragraphs (1)
through (10) of subsection (c), the General Counsel or chief legal
officer of the agency shall publicly certify that, in his or her
opinion, the meeting may be closed to the public and shall state
each relevant exemptive provision. A copy of such certification,
together with a statement from the presiding officer of the meeting
setting forth the time and place of the meeting, and the persons
present, shall be retained by the agency. The agency shall maintain
a complete transcript or electronic recording adequate to record
fully the proceedings of each meeting, or portion of a meeting,
closed to the public, except that in the case of a meeting, or
portion of a meeting, closed to the public pursuant to paragraph
(8), (9)(A), or (10) of subsection (c), the agency shall maintain
either such a transcript or recording, or a set of minutes. Such
minutes shall fully and clearly describe all matters discussed and
shall provide a full and accurate summary of any actions taken, and
the reasons therefor, including a description of each of the views
expressed on any item and the record of any rollcall vote
(reflecting the vote of each member on the question). All documents
considered in connection with any action shall be identified in
such minutes.
(2) The agency shall make promptly available to the public, in a
place easily accessible to the public, the transcript, electronic
recording, or minutes (as required by paragraph (1)) of the
discussion of any item on the agenda, or of any item of the
testimony of any witness received at the meeting, except for such
item or items of such discussion or testimony as the agency
determines to contain information which may be withheld under
subsection (c). Copies of such transcript, or minutes, or a
transcription of such recording disclosing the identity of each
speaker, shall be furnished to any person at the actual cost of
duplication or transcription. The agency shall maintain a complete
verbatim copy of the transcript, a complete copy of the minutes, or
a complete electronic recording of each meeting, or portion of a
meeting, closed to the public, for a period of at least two years
after such meeting, or until one year after the conclusion of any
agency proceeding with respect to which the meeting or portion was
held, whichever occurs later.
(g) Each agency subject to the requirements of this section
shall, within 180 days after the date of enactment of this section,
following consultation with the Office of the Chairman of the
Administrative Conference of the United States and published notice
in the Federal Register of at least thirty days and opportunity for
written comment by any person, promulgate regulations to implement
the requirements of subsections (b) through (f) of this section.
Any person may bring a proceeding in the United States District
Court for the District of Columbia to require an agency to
promulgate such regulations if such agency has not promulgated such
regulations within the time period specified herein. Subject to any
limitations of time provided by law, any person may bring a
proceeding in the United States Court of Appeals for the District
of Columbia to set aside agency regulations issued pursuant to this
subsection that are not in accord with the requirements of
subsections (b) through (f) of this section and to require the
promulgation of regulations that are in accord with such
subsections.
(h)(1) The district courts of the United States shall have
jurisdiction to enforce the requirements of subsections (b) through
(f) of this section by declaratory judgment, injunctive relief, or
other relief as may be appropriate. Such actions may be brought by
any person against an agency prior to, or within sixty days after,
the meeting out of which the violation of this section arises,
except that if public announcement of such meeting is not initially
provided by the agency in accordance with the requirements of this
section, such action may be instituted pursuant to this section at
any time prior to sixty days after any public announcement of such
meeting. Such actions may be brought in the district court of the
United States for the district in which the agency meeting is held
or in which the agency in question has its headquarters, or in the
District Court for the District of Columbia. In such actions a
defendant shall serve his answer within thirty days after the
service of the complaint. The burden is on the defendant to sustain
his action. In deciding such cases the court may examine in camera
any portion of the transcript, electronic recording, or minutes of
a meeting closed to the public, and may take such additional
evidence as it deems necessary. The court, having due regard for
orderly administration and the public interest, as well as the
interests of the parties, may grant such equitable relief as it
deems appropriate, including granting an injunction against future
violations of this section or ordering the agency to make available
to the public such portion of the transcript, recording, or minutes
of a meeting as is not authorized to be withheld under subsection
(c) of this section.
(2) Any Federal court otherwise authorized by law to review
agency action may, at the application of any person properly
participating in the proceeding pursuant to other applicable law,
inquire into violations by the agency of the requirements of this
section and afford such relief as it deems appropriate. Nothing in
this section authorizes any Federal court having jurisdiction
solely on the basis of paragraph (1) to set aside, enjoin, or
invalidate any agency action (other than an action to close a
meeting or to withhold information under this section) taken or
discussed at any agency meeting out of which the violation of this
section arose.
(i) The court may assess against any party reasonable attorney
fees and other litigation costs reasonably incurred by any other
party who substantially prevails in any action brought in
accordance with the provisions of subsection (g) or (h) of this
section, except that costs may be assessed against the plaintiff
only where the court finds that the suit was initiated by the
plaintiff primarily for frivolous or dilatory purposes. In the case
of assessment of costs against an agency, the costs may be assessed
by the court against the United States.
(j) Each agency subject to the requirements of this section shall
annually report to the Congress regarding the following:
(1) The changes in the policies and procedures of the agency
under this section that have occurred during the preceding 1-year
period.
(2) A tabulation of the number of meetings held, the exemptions
applied to close meetings, and the days of public notice provided
to close meetings.
(3) A brief description of litigation or formal complaints
concerning the implementation of this section by the agency.
(4) A brief explanation of any changes in law that have
affected the responsibilities of the agency under this section.
(k) Nothing herein expands or limits the present rights of any
person under section 552 of this title, except that the exemptions
set forth in subsection (c) of this section shall govern in the
case of any request made pursuant to section 552 to copy or inspect
the transcripts, recordings, or minutes described in subsection (f)
of this section. The requirements of chapter 33 of title 44, United
States Code, shall not apply to the transcripts, recordings, and
minutes described in subsection (f) of this section.
(l) This section does not constitute authority to withhold any
information from Congress, and does not authorize the closing of
any agency meeting or portion thereof required by any other
provision of law to be open.
(m) Nothing in this section authorizes any agency to withhold
from any individual any record, including transcripts, recordings,
or minutes required by this section, which is otherwise accessible
to such individual under section 552a of this title.
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