[DRAFT] Open Access Accord

[Namwenia]

The new Ambassador from Namwenia approaches with a large stack of paperwork. "We believe in openness and transparency here in Namwenia. We also believe in the full transparency of government actions and behaviors. As such, we want to propose the Open Records Accord to promote increased transparency in the governments of our member states. We look forward to more discussions on the topic as well as input from the community."

Revision 13:

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted by the World Assembly:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. an infrastructural body is an entity that operates and maintains the network of facilities and public works that support regular public services within a member state,
   2. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
   3. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. discloses information related to communications between an entity and their legal representation where such communications is protected as attorney-client privilege,
   4. discloses trade secrets whereby release would violate member state law or private non-disclosure agreements,
   5. involves national defense, domestic intelligence, member state law enforcement, or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a security risk, or
   6. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information, attorney-client information, or trade secrets as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton, Second Sovereignty

Code: Select all

[quote][b]Open Access Accord[/b]

[b]Category:[/b] Regulation | [b]Area of Effect:[/b] Legal Reform

[i]Applauding[/i] previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as [url=https://www.nationstates.net/page=WA_past_resolution/id=506/council=1]GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records)[/url];

[i]Affirming[/i] that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted by the World Assembly:
[list=1][*]For the purposes of this resolution:
[list=a][*]an [i]infrastructural body[/i] is an entity that operates and maintains the network of facilities and public works that support regular public services within a member state,
[*]a [i]public body[/i] is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
[*]a [i]meeting[/i] is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.[/list]
[*]Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
[*]Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
[list=a][*]relates solely to internal personnel,
[*]discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
[*]discloses information related to communications between an entity and their legal representation where such communications is protected as attorney-client privilege,
[*]discloses trade secrets whereby release would violate member state law or private non-disclosure agreements,
[*]involves national defense, domestic intelligence, member state law enforcement, or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a security risk, or
[*]discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.[/list]
[*]Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information or trade secrets as outlined in Article 3.
[*]Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
[*]Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.[/list]

Co-Author: [nation]Tinhampton[/nation], [nation]Second Sovereignty[/nation][/quote]

[Namwenia]

Revision 0:

Open Records Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access to information only enhances the ability of the citizens of member states to learn and participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of the public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more sapient individuals granted the authority by a member state to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial power on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Public Business - The act of governing.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact public business.
2. The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to the goings on of the World Assembly including, but not limited to, transcripts of the meetings of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
3. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings held by public bodies except as specified by previously enacted legislation of the World Assembly or as outlined in Article 4.
4. Public access as stipulated in Article 2 or 3 may be provided to the public through the following means: a) Access for physical attendance, b) Recording of audio or video, c) Access to transcripts of meetings, or d) Other means of public access as deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
5. Access may be restricted to meetings of the World Assembly or a member state public body if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Access may be further restricted for member state public bodies if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
6. If access is restricted to meetings of a public body as outlined in Article 5, transcripts of said meeting must be retained.
7. Member states must make available upon request transcripts retained under Article 6 to sapient citizens of member states after a period of time defined by member state law with the following allowable redactions: a) personal information as outlined in Article 3(a) and (b); or b) information which would constitute a national security risk.
8. Transcripts of meetings of the World Assembly retained under Section 6 must be deposited with the Universal Library Coalition for retention.

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access to information only enhances the ability of the citizens of member states to learn and participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of the public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more sapient individuals granted the authority by a member state to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial power on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Public Business - The act of governing.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact public business.
2. The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide access to the activity of the World Assembly including, but not limited to, transcripts of the meetings of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
3. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide access to meetings of public bodies except as specified by previously enacted legislation of the World Assembly or as outlined in Article 4.
4. Public access as stipulated in Article 2 or 3 may be provided through the following means: a) Physical attendance, b) Digital recording, c) Transcripts of meetings, or d) Other means of as deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
5. Access may be restricted to meetings of the World Assembly or a member state public body if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Access may be further restricted for member state public bodies if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
6. If access is restricted to meetings of a public body as outlined in Article 5, transcripts of said meeting must be retained.
7. Transcripts retained under Article 6 must made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done from its release with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 5(a) and (b).
8. Transcripts of meetings of the World Assembly must be deposited with the Universal Library Coalition for retention.

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access to information only enhances the ability of the citizens of member states to learn and participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of the public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the authority by a member state to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial power on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to the activities of the World Assembly including, but not limited to, transcripts of the meetings of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
3. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings of public bodies except as specified by previously enacted legislation of the World Assembly or as outlined in Article 4.
4. Public access as stipulated in Article 2 or 3 may be provided through the following means: a) Physical attendance, b) Digital recording, c) Transcripts of meetings, or d) Other means of as deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
5. Access may be restricted to meetings of the World Assembly or a member state public body if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Access may be further restricted for member state public bodies if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
6. If access is restricted to meetings of a public body as outlined in Article 5, transcripts of said meeting must be retained.
7. Transcripts retained under Article 6 must made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done from its release with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 5(a) and (b).

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access to information only enhances the ability of the citizens of member states to learn and participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of the public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the authority by a member state to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial power on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to the activities of the World Assembly including, but not limited to, transcripts of the meetings of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
3. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings of public bodies except as specified by previously enacted legislation of the World Assembly or as outlined in Article 4.
4. Public access may be provided a) physically, b) digitally, c) through transcripts, or d) Other means as deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
5. Public access as outlined in Article 4 may be restricted if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Public access may be further restricted by member states if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
6. If access is restricted to meetings of a public body as outlined in Article 5, transcripts of said meeting must be retained.
7. Transcripts retained under Article 6 must made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done from its release with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 5(a) and (b).

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to its activities including those of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
3. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings of public bodies except as outlined in Article 5.
4. Public access may be provided physically, digitally, or through other means deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
5. Public access as outlined in Article 4 may be restricted if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Public access may be further restricted by member states if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
6. If access is restricted to meetings as outlined in Article 5, transcripts must be retained.
7. Transcripts retained under Article 6 must be made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 5(a) and (b).

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings of public bodies except as outlined in Article 4.
3. Public access may be provided physically, digitally, or through other means deemed appropriate by the member state.
4. Public access may be restricted if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy, c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
5. If access is restricted to meetings as outlined in Article 3, transcripts must be retained.
6. Transcripts retained under Article 4 must be made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 4.

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the World Assembly hereby enacts the following articles:

1. Defined -
   
   • Public Body - An entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state.
   • Meeting - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings of public bodies except as outlined in Article 4.
3. Public access may be provided physically, digitally, or through other means deemed appropriate by the member state.
4. Public access may be restricted if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy, c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
5. If access is restricted to meetings as outlined in Article 4, transcripts must be retained.
6. Transcripts retained under Article 5 must be made publicly accessible after the releasing officer or agency is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 4.
7. Sapient citizens of a member state have the right to report violations of public access requirements to the World Assembly Compliance Commission, who will work with the Independent Adjudicative Office to investigate to determine appropriate fines or sanctions.

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions, and
   2. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions, and
   2. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
   2. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. an infrastructural body is an entity that operates and maintains the network of facilities and public works that support regular public services within of a member state,
   2. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
   3. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton, Second Sovereignty

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. an infrastructural body is an entity that operates and maintains the network of facilities and public works that support regular public services within of a member state,
   2. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
   3. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. discloses trade secrets whereby release would violate member state law or private non-disclosure agreements,
   4. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   5. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton, Second Sovereignty

Open Access Accord

Category: Regulation | Area of Effect: Legal Reform

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access and transparency enhances the ability of citizens to participate in their government and should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted by the World Assembly:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. an infrastructural body is an entity that operates and maintains the network of facilities and public works that support regular public services within a member state,
   2. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions excluding infrastructural bodies and member state militaries, and
   3. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. discloses private information which may be private under member state law surrounding on attorney-client relationships,
   4. discloses trade secrets whereby release would violate member state law or private non-disclosure agreements,
   5. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   6. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information, attorney-client information, or trade secrets as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.
6. Nothing of the above shall prevent a public body from removing a meeting attendant who obstructs the meeting through actions which would, regardless of the obstruction itself, otherwise violate member state law.

Co-Author: Tinhampton, Second Sovereignty

[Hulldom]

If you're not using the [list] BBCode, you ought to be and given the spacing I doubt it. Generally a good idea as I think, though I must note that I absolutely abhor the name. Missouri calls their public records access law the Sunshine Act and it's just a tremendously weird misnomer.

[Namwenia]

If you're not using the [list] BBCode, you ought to be and given the spacing I doubt it. Generally a good idea as I think, though I must note that I absolutely abhor the name. Missouri calls their public records access law the Sunshine Act and it's just a tremendously weird misnomer.

OOC - Name can always be changed. Sunshine laws are a relatively common name across the US especially for laws pertaining to public records access. But, don't want the name to be a barrier to support. Changed to Open Records Accord.

I also added the [list] BBCode and added the entire code for this behind a spoiler.

[Resilentia]

An alternative could be to use a more descriptive and universally comprehensible title, such as "International Accord on Government Transparency," "Global Open Government Accord," or something similar.

There are a few aspects that might need further clarification or consideration:

Article 6 and 7 propose the retention and availability of transcripts of meetings where access has been restricted. It's important to clarify the specific period of time for which these transcripts must be retained, and how soon they should be made available upon request.

While Article 4 discusses the means through which public access can be provided, it might be worth considering the inclusion of specific provisions about the use of technology and digital platforms for facilitating transparency, considering the evolving nature of governance and public participation.

The proposal seems to focus primarily on the transparency of meetings, which is undoubtedly a significant aspect of government operations. However, the notion of transparency could be expanded to include other aspects of governance, such as the accessibility of public records, government data, policy decisions, expenditure, etc.

Lastly, enforcement mechanisms and provisions to hold governments accountable for non-compliance might also need to be discussed in the proposal.

[Hulldom]

An alternative could be to use a more descriptive and universally comprehensible title, such as "International Accord on Government Transparency," "Global Open Government Accord," or something similar.

There are a few aspects that might need further clarification or consideration:

This is good, OP, and I’m glad you took their (and my) advice.

Article 6 and 7 propose the retention and availability of transcripts of meetings where access has been restricted. It's important to clarify the specific period of time for which these transcripts must be retained, and how soon they should be made available upon request.

There’s no reason to specify this beyond some cursory statement. Specifying a set period is absolutely going to be a can of worms. Something like “Records may be released when the releasing officer or agency is satisfied that no undue harm would be done under the exceptions in clause (5).”

While Article 4 discusses the means through which public access can be provided, it might be worth considering the inclusion of specific provisions about the use of technology and digital platforms for facilitating transparency, considering the evolving nature of governance and public participation.

No. Digital governance is absolutely fine, but if this is to be broached at all, OP, I’d simply have digital requests and digital record keeping be an option under the law as it is in most states. This applies to the below, but at least with what my mind went to when I read this initially, things like the Congressional Record and Hansard are already available digitally and get printed for deposit in libraries.

The proposal seems to focus primarily on the transparency of meetings, which is undoubtedly a significant aspect of government operations. However, the notion of transparency could be expanded to include other aspects of governance, such as the accessibility of public records, government data, policy decisions, expenditure, etc.

Lastly, enforcement mechanisms and provisions to hold governments accountable for non-compliance might also need to be discussed in the proposal.

This is also good, but I think ought to be broached in a subsequent resolution considering, at least when it comes to things like white papers/policy documents and data, they’re likely to be broached differently than things like budget documents that might be part of the official record already, at least as broached in the resolution, or other documents that might be necessarily already public record.

[Tinhampton]

This is what your list code should look like:

Code: Select all

[list=1][*]Defined -
[list][*][i]Public Body[/i] - An entity comprised of two or more sapient individuals granted the authority by a member state to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial power on behalf of the government of a member state.
[*][i]Public Business[/i] - The act of governing.
[*][i]Meeting[/i] - The convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact public business.[/list]
[*]The World Assembly shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to the goings on of the World Assembly including, but not limited to, transcripts of the meetings of all committees or subcommittees thereof.
[*]Member states shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to meetings held by public bodies except as specified by previously enacted legislation of the World Assembly or as outlined in Article 4.
[*]Public access as stipulated in Article 2 or 3 may be provided to the public through the following means: a) Access for physical attendance, b) Recording of audio or video, c) Access to transcripts of meetings, or d) Other means of public access as deemed appropriate by the World Assembly (2) or member state (3).
[*]Access may be restricted to meetings of the World Assembly or a member state public body if said meeting a) relates solely to internal personnel, or b) discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy. Access may be further restricted for member state public bodies if said meeting c) involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or d) discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
[*]If access is restricted to meetings of a public body as outlined in Article 5, transcripts of said meeting must be retained.
[*]Member states must make available upon request transcripts retained under Article 6 to sapient citizens of member states after a period of time defined by member state law with the following allowable redactions: a) personal information as outlined in Article 3(a) and (b); or b) information which would constitute a national security risk.
[*]Transcripts of meetings of the World Assembly retained under Section 6 must be deposited with the Universal Library Coalition for retention.[/list]

This is not a comment on the actual text of your proposal. I support it in principle but feel as though it could be simplified.

[Namwenia]

"The legislation has been renamed (again) and has been amended based on some of the comments provided thus far.

Our team is also working on potential simplification of certain portions of it and considering other ideas on penalties for violations as presented through other channels.

Thank you!"
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Namwenia]

"We are once more asking for insight or input into this proposal. We are not submitting prematurely as we want to ensure we have as much input as possible before submission as we feel this is an important idea and want to see it fully developed."
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[The Ice States]

Ooc: "Sapient" in the definition of a "public body" is unnecessary -- no rational nation will interpret "individuals" to include cats and dogs. Nor do you need to define "public business", as you use that term only once -- instead replace "public business" in the definition of a "meeting" with "governance activites" or something to that effect.

Section 3 -- access for whom? Just government officials?

Section 8 -- Add a qualifier that they must only be deposited upon being published under Section 7. The ULC is simply the administration of a public library, so it is probably not the best committee to receive classified transcripts. If you want even classified ones to be stored by a committee, use a better one such as the WACC for those specifically, although I am still not sure if it is necessary or a good idea to require further distribution of documents with sensitive information to some committee.

[Namwenia]

Ooc: "Sapient" in the definition of a "public body" is unnecessary -- no rational nation will interpret "individuals" to include cats and dogs. Nor do you need to define "public business", as you use that term only once -- instead replace "public business" in the definition of a "meeting" with "governance activites" or something to that effect.

Section 3 -- access for whom? Just government officials?

Section 8 -- Add a qualifier that they must only be deposited upon being published under Section 7. The ULC is simply the administration of a public library, so it is probably not the best committee to receive classified transcripts. If you want even classified ones to be stored by a committee, use a better one such as the WACC for those specifically, although I am still not sure if it is necessary or a good idea to require further distribution of documents with sensitive information to some committee.

"We appreciate your insightful comments. The draft has been amended to Revision 2 to respond to the comments / recommendations from the Ambassador from The Ice States.

Specifically - access is listed as 'public access' instead of general 'access' in Section 3, and Section 8 has been removed - the specifications of how the WA stores transcripts may not be necessary to be explicitly called out here.

Additional revisions will be forthcoming as we consider additional language regarding violations of the requirements as well. Suggestions and comments are appreciated, as always.

Thank you again!
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Namwenia]

"The Ambassador is once more looking for input on this proposal.

We thank you for your time."
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Namwenia]

"The Ambassador is once again seeking your input on this proposal.

Thank you for your time."
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Namwenia]

"Following the passage of Star Gazing Day, our team is ready to focus our work on this proposal. Revision 4 has been prepared and has been presented for your consideration.

Thank you all."
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Imperium Anglorum]

Open access to WA documents is not a Regulation: Legal Reform resolution. Standards on Police Accountability [2020] GAS 2, viewtopic.php?p=37360783#p37360783.

[Namwenia]

Open access to WA documents is not a Regulation: Legal Reform resolution. Standards on Police Accountability [2020] GAS 2, viewtopic.php?p=37360783#p37360783.

OOC: Thanks for the additional information and previous ruling. I will remove the WA open access sections and focus on the member state meeting access aspects of the proposal.

[Namwenia]

"Based on additional review of past precedent, we have updated the proposal to Revision 6. We await comments or thoughts on the matter.

Thank you all."
-Arvo Halberg
General Assembly Chief for World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Tinhampton]

Why is Article 7 - which was added by surprise a few minutes ago (as I was preparing to offer commentary on your six-article draft) - necessary? GA#390 already exists; it creates the WACC to "conduct investigations on matters vis-à-vis observance with World Assembly resolutions" via "civilian and military police forces," which would include this one if enacted, and all such investigations trigger the GA#440 sanctions process by definition. If you believe that your nation is not complying with OAA, you can file a report to the police and they will utilise their WACC "liaison point" to help start a WACC investigation.

[Namwenia]

Why is Article 7 - which was added by surprise a few minutes ago (as I was preparing to offer commentary on your six-article draft) - necessary? GA#390 already exists; it creates the WACC to "conduct investigations on matters vis-à-vis observance with World Assembly resolutions" via "civilian and military police forces," which would include this one if enacted, and all such investigations trigger the GA#440 sanctions process by definition. If you believe that your nation is not complying with OAA, you can file a report to the police and they will utilise their WACC "liaison point" to help start a WACC investigation.

OOC: That's a valid point. I wanted it clear that citizens can report potential violations from member states, but extant law already covers that pretty explicitly. This Article will be removed in the next version.

[Tinhampton]

Now I've set fire to things I can get on with my other job, which is setting fire to things

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions, and
   2. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.

Ex-post-facto general note on co-authoring: You - general you - are welcome to assign Tinhampton co-authorship on any proposal she attempts to rewrite if you, the author, believe that her contributions are so significant as to warrant that status.

[Namwenia]

Now I've set fire to things I can get on with my other job, which is setting fire to things

Applauding previous efforts by the World Assembly to enhance openness and transparency in government such as GAR #506 (Public Access To Court Records);

Affirming that public access enhances the ability of citizens of member states to participate in their government;

Acknowledging that transparency and accessibility of public bodies of member states should be encouraged;

Therefore, the following shall be enacted:

1. For the purposes of this resolution:
   
   1. a public body is an entity comprised of two or more individuals granted the right to exercise legislative, executive, or judicial authority on behalf of the government of a member state or its political subdivisions, and
   2. a meeting is the convening of a public body to consider, enforce, or transact governance activities.
2. Public bodies shall, to the best of their ability, provide public access to their meetings (which may be physically, digitally, or through any other means they deem appropriate) except as outlined in Article 3.
3. Public access to a meeting may be restricted if said meeting:
   
   1. relates solely to internal personnel,
   2. discloses personal information whereby public access would constitute an invasion of personal privacy,
   3. involves national defense or foreign policy whereby revelation of said information would constitute a national security risk, or
   4. discloses information that, if released prematurely, may cause civil or financial instability of the member state.
4. Transcripts must be retained of any meeting for which public access is restricted as outlined in Article 3. Such transcripts must be made publicly accessible after the public body in question is satisfied no undue harm would be done by its release, with redactions allowable for personal information as outlined in Article 3.
5. Where a public body refuses public access to one of its meetings and Article 3 demonstrably does not apply, its member state shall act to ensure that the public can access that meeting through some means.

"The Ambassador from Namwenia has reviewed and accepts the recommended edits from the Ambassador from Tinhampton. If your nation would like co-author credit for the well crafted, recommendations, we would be happy to oblige.

Thank you,"
-Usagi Lenin
Chief of Staff of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

OOC: I updated the main post to Revision 7 using the streamlining and new closing line from Tinhampton, which I especially like. And, Tinhampton has been added as a co-author.

[Namwenia]

"The Ambassador is once again seeking your input on this proposal. Please let us know if you have any comments on Revision 7.

Thank you."
-Arvo Halberg
General Assembly Chief of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia

[Wallenburg]

"This requires unrestricted public access to nearly all our military bases, intelligence installations, police stations, power stations, trainyards, and airfields. This is not acceptable. It is one thing to make available the minutes of a government body's official meetings, it is another thing entirely to require that any government deliberation that bears relevance to public activity must be open to intrusion by any random citizen. This does not even accommodate for the need to remove individuals who obstruct the ordinary proceedings of public offices."

[Imperium Anglorum]

E Mortimer Wellesley. I agree with the permanent representative for Wallenburg that the extent of the requirement is too broad.

[Namwenia]

"To address the concerns of the representatives from both Wallenburg and Imperium Anglorum, an additional clause has been added regarding the removal of those who cause issues during the meeting of public bodies. Further, the Ambassador from Namwenia believes that the language in Article 3 as well as the definition in Article 1 of a 'public body' should cover the additional concerns from the two representatives. Unless otherwise specified as such by existing member state law, neither military nor infrastructural bodies should be covered as as legislative, executive or judicial public bodies.

We look forward to further discussion on this matter.

Thank you."
-Arvo Halberg
General Assembly Chief of World Assembly Ambassador Statler Miyamoto
The United Socialist States of Namwenia