| 1 | | - | Date of enactment: March 27, 2024 |
|---|
| 2 | | - | 2023 Senate Bill 119 Date of publication*: March 28, 2024 |
|---|
| 3 | | - | 2023 WISCONSIN ACT 223 |
|---|
| 4 | | - | AN ACT to amend 19.36 (8) (b) and 59.20 (3) (a) of the statutes; relating to: public records identifying confidential |
|---|
| 5 | | - | law enforcement informants. |
|---|
| 6 | | - | The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in |
|---|
| 7 | | - | senate and assembly, do enact as follows: |
|---|
| 8 | | - | SECTION 1. 19.36 (8) (b) of the statutes is amended |
|---|
| 9 | | - | to read: |
|---|
| 10 | | - | 19.36 (8) (b) If an authority that is a law enforcement |
|---|
| 11 | | - | agency receives a request to inspect or copy a record or |
|---|
| 12 | | - | portion of a record under s. 19.35 (1) (a) that contains spe- |
|---|
| 13 | | - | cific information including but not limited to a name, |
|---|
| 14 | | - | address, telephone number, voice recording, or handwrit- |
|---|
| 15 | | - | ing sample which that, if disclosed, would identify an |
|---|
| 16 | | - | informant, the authority shall delete the portion of the |
|---|
| 17 | | - | record in which the information is contained or, if no por- |
|---|
| 18 | | - | tion of the record can be inspected or copied without |
|---|
| 19 | | - | identifying the informant, shall withhold the record |
|---|
| 20 | | - | unless the legal custodian of the record, designated under |
|---|
| 21 | | - | s. 19.33, makes a determination, at the time that the |
|---|
| 22 | | - | request is made, that the public interest in allowing a per- |
|---|
| 23 | | - | son to inspect, copy or receive a copy of such identifying |
|---|
| 24 | | - | information outweighs the harm done to the public inter- |
|---|
| 25 | | - | est by providing such access. |
|---|
| 26 | | - | SECTION 2. 59.20 (3) (a) of the statutes is amended |
|---|
| 27 | | - | to read: |
|---|
| 28 | | - | 59.20 (3) (a) Every sheriff, clerk of the circuit court, |
|---|
| 29 | | - | register of deeds, treasurer, comptroller, register of pro- |
|---|
| 30 | | - | bate, clerk, and county surveyor shall keep his or her |
|---|
| 31 | | - | office at the county seat in the offices provided by the |
|---|
| 32 | | - | county or by special provision of law; or if there is none, |
|---|
| 33 | | - | then at such place as the board directs. The board may |
|---|
| 34 | | - | also require any elective or appointive county official to |
|---|
| 35 | | - | keep his or her office at the county seat in an office to be |
|---|
| 36 | | - | provided by the county. All such officers shall keep their |
|---|
| 37 | | - | offices open during the usual business hours of any day |
|---|
| 38 | | - | except Sunday, as the board directs. With proper care, the |
|---|
| 39 | | - | officers shall open to the examination of any person all |
|---|
| 40 | | - | books and papers required to be kept in his or her office |
|---|
| 41 | | - | and permit any person so examining to take notes and |
|---|
| 42 | | - | copies of such books, records, papers, or minutes there- |
|---|
| 43 | | - | from except as authorized in par. (c) and ss. 19.36 (10) |
|---|
| 44 | | - | and (11) and 19.59 (3) (d) or under ch. 69 and except as |
|---|
| 45 | | - | authorized in s. 19.36 (8) to the extent the books, records, |
|---|
| 46 | | - | papers, or minutes contain information that would iden- |
|---|
| 47 | | - | tify an informant as such. |
|---|
| 1 | + | LRB-1463/1 |
|---|
| 2 | + | MPG:skw |
|---|
| 3 | + | 2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE |
|---|
| 4 | + | 2023 SENATE BILL 119 |
|---|
| 5 | + | March 8, 2023 - Introduced by Senators WANGGAARD, WIRCH, COWLES, FELZKOWSKI, |
|---|
| 6 | + | JAMES, MARKLEIN and SPREITZER, cosponsored by Representatives NEDWESKI, |
|---|
| 7 | + | MCGUIRE, OHNSTAD, C. ANDERSON, J. ANDERSON, CONSIDINE, DITTRICH, |
|---|
| 8 | + | DONOVAN, EDMING, EMERSON, JOERS, KITCHENS, MURPHY, MURSAU, |
|---|
| 9 | + | ORTIZ-VELEZ, RETTINGER, SINICKI, SPIROS, STUBBS, SUBECK and TUSLER. |
|---|
| 10 | + | Referred to Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety. |
|---|
| 11 | + | AN ACT to amend 19.36 (8) (b) and 59.20 (3) (a) of the statutes; relating to: public |
|---|
| 12 | + | records identifying confidential law enforcement informants. |
|---|
| 13 | + | Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau |
|---|
| 14 | + | Current law prohibits a law enforcement agency from disclosing records or |
|---|
| 15 | + | parts of records in response to a public records request that, if disclosed, would |
|---|
| 16 | + | identify a confidential informant of a law enforcement agency. Current law provides |
|---|
| 17 | + | an exception to that nondisclosure requirement if the records custodian determines |
|---|
| 18 | + | that the public interest in disclosing the record outweighs the harm done to the |
|---|
| 19 | + | public interest by providing access to the record. |
|---|
| 20 | + | This bill extends that nondisclosure requirement concerning the personally |
|---|
| 21 | + | identifiable information of confidential law enforcement informants to records or |
|---|
| 22 | + | parts of records maintained by any official or body subject to the public records law, |
|---|
| 23 | + | not just law enforcement agencies. |
|---|
| 24 | + | The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do |
|---|
| 25 | + | enact as follows: |
|---|
| 26 | + | SECTION 1. 19.36 (8) (b) of the statutes is amended to read: |
|---|
| 27 | + | 19.36 (8) (b) If an authority that is a law enforcement agency receives a request |
|---|
| 28 | + | to inspect or copy a record or portion of a record under s. 19.35 (1) (a) that contains |
|---|
| 29 | + | 1 |
|---|
| 30 | + | 2 |
|---|
| 31 | + | 3 |
|---|
| 32 | + | 4 |
|---|
| 33 | + | 5 - 2 -2023 - 2024 Legislature LRB-1463/1 |
|---|
| 34 | + | MPG:skw |
|---|
| 35 | + | SECTION 1 SENATE BILL 119 |
|---|
| 36 | + | specific information including but not limited to a name, address, telephone number, |
|---|
| 37 | + | voice recording, or handwriting sample which that, if disclosed, would identify an |
|---|
| 38 | + | informant, the authority shall delete the portion of the record in which the |
|---|
| 39 | + | information is contained or, if no portion of the record can be inspected or copied |
|---|
| 40 | + | without identifying the informant, shall withhold the record unless the legal |
|---|
| 41 | + | custodian of the record, designated under s. 19.33, makes a determination, at the |
|---|
| 42 | + | time that the request is made, that the public interest in allowing a person to inspect, |
|---|
| 43 | + | copy or receive a copy of such identifying information outweighs the harm done to the |
|---|
| 44 | + | public interest by providing such access. |
|---|
| 45 | + | SECTION 2. 59.20 (3) (a) of the statutes is amended to read: |
|---|
| 46 | + | 59.20 (3) (a) Every sheriff, clerk of the circuit court, register of deeds, treasurer, |
|---|
| 47 | + | comptroller, register of probate, clerk, and county surveyor shall keep his or her office |
|---|
| 48 | + | at the county seat in the offices provided by the county or by special provision of law; |
|---|
| 49 | + | or if there is none, then at such place as the board directs. The board may also require |
|---|
| 50 | + | any elective or appointive county official to keep his or her office at the county seat |
|---|
| 51 | + | in an office to be provided by the county. All such officers shall keep their offices open |
|---|
| 52 | + | during the usual business hours of any day except Sunday, as the board directs. With |
|---|
| 53 | + | proper care, the officers shall open to the examination of any person all books and |
|---|
| 54 | + | papers required to be kept in his or her office and permit any person so examining |
|---|
| 55 | + | to take notes and copies of such books, records, papers, or minutes therefrom except |
|---|
| 56 | + | as authorized in par. (c) and ss. 19.36 (8), (10), and (11) and 19.59 (3) (d) or under ch. |
|---|
| 57 | + | 69. |
|---|