Recently Asked Questions

I just read your excellent answer about posting documents per the OML changes in advance of meetings.

I think you are right on target.

My concern is to ask you to add to your questions for the COOG the following: Do working documents being shaped and edited at committee meetings need to be posted in advance of the committee meeting?

The Committee meeting is an open meeting. Let's say the policy committee is going to discuss a draft revision to a policy. Must we really post the draft revision prior to the meeting? The way our board works, the draft is likely revised several times over three or four policy committee meetings before it becomes part of a board packet for a full board meeting. My "gut" tells me that complying at that level would be overkill. A similar situation would be draft versions of a budget.

I think the public has an opportunity to see the documents in question before they are finalized at a full board meeting, so my instinct is that working documents would not need to be posted in advance. But that's not what a strict reading of the law itself and your posting tells me.

So, I am torn and would love clarification.

Lastly, I just want to compliment you on this service that you are providing. it is really great.
 

Our library has a number of older Environmental Impact Studies (both draft and finals) which are taking up space, and we were wondering if we could discard them. Can a library make its own retention schedule for these or do libraries need to keep these for a certain amount of time so the public can access them?
If we can make our own retention schedule, do you have a recommendation as to how long they should be kept?