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Attorney General Mike DeWine
As Sunshine
Week Begins, DeWine Releases 2015 ‘Yellow Book’
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine today released the
2015 edition of Ohio Sunshine Laws: An Open Government Resource Manual.
The release of the manual, commonly referred to as the “Yellow Book,”
coincides with the beginning of Sunshine Week.
“The ‘Yellow Book’ is published to help requesters understand their
rights and for government agencies to understand their obligations
under Ohio’s Sunshine Laws,” said Attorney General DeWine. “Knowing
what is required when you submit or receive a records request is the
easiest way to eliminate records disputes and to promote open,
transparent government.”
The Sunshine Laws Manual provides summaries of Revised Code provisions
and case law regarding the Ohio Public Records Act and Open Meetings
Act. The 2015 edition includes updates on recent open government legal
decisions and law changes. It can be accessed at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/YellowBook.
In addition to producing the “Yellow Book,” the Ohio Attorney General’s
Public Records Unit conducts Sunshine Laws Trainings at dozens of
locations around Ohio. The training on Ohio Public Records Act is
required for local public officials or their designee at least once per
elected term and also includes training on the Open Meetings Act. These
trainings are also open to the public and media. A list of trainings
can be found at www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/SunshineLawTraining.
In December, Attorney General also announced that these Sunshine Laws
Trainings are now also available as an online video course. The course
is available to anyone through the Attorney General’s website at no
cost to the user and is approved for three hours of self-study
Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit by the Supreme Court of Ohio.
The online training can be accessed at
https://SunshineLaw.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/
The Ohio Attorney General’s Public Records Unit also operates a
voluntary Public Records Mediation Program to resolve disputes between
local government entities and records requestors. Since the program was
launched in the summer of 2012, it has received more than 170 mediation
requests, with most requests being successfully resolved for both
parties. The program can help requestors receive their records more
quickly when there is a dispute, and the program protects taxpayers by
helping local governments avoid costly litigation. Information on this
program can be found at
www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov/PublicRecordsMediation.
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