Purpose of the Bill

The goal of this bill is to amend Minnesota's existing government data practices regarding public data requests made to school districts. It introduces new restrictions to ensure transparency and accountability in how such data requests are handled.

Main Provisions

• Definition and Scope: The bill applies to independent or special school districts as specified in existing Minnesota law.
• Data Request Identification: Individuals requesting public data from school districts must provide identification and cannot remain anonymous.
• Cost of Unfulfilled Inspection Appointments: If a person requests data but fails to appear to inspect it, they may be charged additional fees. These fees cover not only the costs outlined in the existing law but also the cost of employee time spent distinguishing public data from private data.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• This bill adds a new requirement for mandatory personal identification for individuals making public data requests to school districts, overriding a previous allowance for anonymity.
• Introduces a new cost structure for incomplete request appointments, which did not exist before under subdivision 3.

Relevant Terms

government data practices, public data requests, school districts, anonymity, identification credentials, inspection fees, employee time costs, public versus not public data.