House Bill 720

AN ACT TO DESCRIBE THOSE LEGISLATIVE RECORDS THAT ARE CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVILEGED PURSUANT TO THE INHERENT AUTHORITY OF THE LEGISLATURE TO REGULATE PUBLIC ACCESS TO ITS RECORDS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. The Legislature declares and finds the following:

(a) The Mississippi Constitution of 1890 vests the Legislature with the authority to investigate public and private activities to support the legislative process.

(b) The process by which the Legislature conducts investigations and deliberates on legislation is critical to the making of sound public policy.

(c) Information collected by the Legislature and its employees during its investigations or the legislative process that is not publicly reported should be protected from use in judicial and administrative proceedings, as such use could have a chilling effect on the deliberative processes of the Legislature.

(d) Section 25-61-17 provides the Legislature with the exclusive authority to regulate public access to its records.

(e) The inherent authority of the Legislature to make certain legislative records nonpublic and privileged is necessary to the principle of the Legislature's independence as a separate branch of state government.

SECTION 2. Except as otherwise expressly permitted or required by legislative rules or by act of the Legislature, and except for bills, measures, reports or documents prepared or maintained by the Legislature specifically for general or limited publication, distribution or dissemination to the public, the following records in the possession, custody or control of the Legislature shall be confidential and privileged and may not be disclosed or made public: files, memoranda, correspondence, drafts, reports, documents, communications and work product created in the course of the professional relationship between a legislative employee and a member of the Legislature, and any other research, information, map or data in print, electronic, magnetic or other form of media. These privileged records shall not be within the scope of discovery in a judicial or administrative proceeding, including a subpoena or order compelling the production of the records.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2011.