Important Things To Know About FOIA Text Archiving
Leaders in
government institutions are no longer turning a blind eye to the fact that
everyone uses personal mobile devices for work-related discussions. Today, a
lot of people are using formerly unconventional means to discuss business
matters. For instance, it is not surprising anymore to see a city attorney
sending a text message to a colleague instead of using email, their personal
device or an official city phone. Due to this, it is only fair that these
messages or communications be legally recognized as matters of public record.
Secure FOIA text archiving is the proper manner in which these messages can be
handled.
In early
2011, the Office of the Attorney General of Texas ruled that text messages as well
as emails that are sent between public officials can be considered as public
information subject to the Texas Public Information Act. Prior to this, a city
in this state had received a request for emails and SMS text messages that are
sent between the commission between members, the senior personnel and city
secretary to considered as matters of public record. Even though the city
attorney argued that the Texas Public
Information Act exempted from this kind of information because of privacy
concerns, the attorney general’s office ruled against the city and affirmed
that the emails and SMS text messages that are created in connection with the
transaction of official businesses are taken as public information and covered
by the Texas Public Information Act, hence those messages are open records that
need to be archived.
It is not
only in Texas where there have been discussions on FOIA
text archiving. In Illinois, the attorney general’s public access bureau
published a binding opinion, Opinion 11-066, that clearly establishes that
electronic communications that are related to information on the federal, state
or local level, whether shared on privately or publicly-owned devices, can be
taken as public records, hence they are subject to the Freedom of Information
Act.
For more info on FOIA text archiving,
visit our website https://telemessage.com/
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