BOSTON (AP) — A bill aimed at overhauling the state’s public records law has passed a key hurdle.
A six-member conference committee approved the legislation Monday. It must now be approved by both chambers.
The bill would require public records requests to be completed in 10 days and would limit how much an agency or municipality could charge to provide the records.
It would also allow courts to award attorney’s fees if a person seeking records goes to court to obtain them and wins. The bill presumes the agency or municipality will have to cover the fees, although there are exemptions. The Senate version of the bill would have required the fees to be paid.
The conference committee was charged with coming up with a compromise version of separate House and Senate bills.
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