Connecticut has passed a law giving agencies a way to deny “vexatious requesters” access to public records.
House Bill 5175 was signed into law by Gov. Dannel Malloy on June 7, 2018. Under the law, a public agency can petition the state’s Freedom of Information Commission “for relief from a requester that the public agency alleges is a vexatious requester.” From there, a hearing may be held and if the requester is determined to be “vexatious,” the agency can deny future requests for up to one year.
Next Request, an online records requesting platform, defines a “vexatious requester” as “a citizen who repeatedly attempts to get information from their government through frequent or voluminous requests.” Read more…