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--- version:File No. 202+++ version:(document, no version)@@ -1,465 +1,4 @@-Senate-SB225 / File No. 202 1--General Assembly File No. 202-February Session, 2026 Senate Bill No. 225--Senate, March 26, 2026--The Committee on Government Administration and Elections-reported through SEN. FLEXER of the 29th Dist., Chairperson-of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the bill ought to-pass.-- AN ACT CONCERNING FEES FOR COPYING, REVIEWING AND-REDACTING RECORDS CREATED BY POLICE BODY-WORN-RECORDING EQUIPMENT AND DASHBOARD CAMERAS.-Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General-Assembly convened:--Section 1. Section 29-6d of the 2026 supplement to the general statutes 1-is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective 2-October 1, 2026): 3-(a) For purposes of this section, [and] section 2 of this act and section 4-7-277b: 5-(1) "Law enforcement unit" has the same meaning as provided in 6-section 7-294a; 7-(2) "Police officer" means a sworn member of a law enforcement unit 8-or any member of a law enforcement unit who performs police duties; 9-(3) "Body-worn recording equipment" means an electronic recording 10-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 2--device that is capable of recording audio and video; 11-(4) "Dashboard camera" means a dashboard camera with a remote 12-recorder, as defined in section 7-277b; 13-(5) "Digital data storage device or service" means a device or service 14-that retains the data from the recordings made by body-worn recording 15-equipment using computer data storage; [and] 16-(6) "Police patrol vehicle" means any state or local police vehicle other 17-than an administrative vehicle in which an occupant is wearing body -18-worn camera equipment, a bicycle, a motor scooter, an all -terrain 19-vehicle, an electric personal assistive mobility device, as defined in 20-subsection (a) of section 14-289h, or an animal control vehicle; 21-(7) "Freedom of Information Act" has the same meaning as provided 22-in section 1-200; 23-(8) "Requesting party" means the person requesting a record created 24-using body-worn recording equipment or a dashboard camera pursuant 25-to the Freedom of Information Act; 26-(9) "Involved person" means (A) any individual depicted in the 27-record created using body -worn recording equipment or a dashboard 28-camera, (B) any individual directly involved in the incident that led to 29-the police officer being called to respond, or (C) any police officer 30-responding to such incident, including the police officer whose body -31-worn recording equipment or dashboard camera created the record; and 32-(10) "Redact" means to obscure, pixelate or mute any portion of a 33-record created using body -worn recording equipment or a dashboard 34-camera. 35-(b) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection 36-and the Police Officer Standards and Training Council shall jointly 37-evaluate and approve the minimal technical specifications of body-worn 38-recording equipment that shall be worn by police officers pursuant to 39-this section, dashboard cameras that shall be used in each police patrol 40-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 3--vehicle and digital data storage devices or services that shall be used by 41-a law enforcement unit to retain the data from the recordings made by 42-such equipment. The commissioner and council shall make such 43-minimal technical specifications available to each law enforcement unit 44-in a manner determined by the commissioner and council. The 45-commissioner and council may revise the minimal technical 46-specifications when the commissioner and council determine that 47-revisions to such specifications are necessary. 48-(c) (1) Each police officer shall use body -worn recording equipment 49-while interacting with the public in such sworn member's law 50-enforcement capacity, except as provided in subsection (g) of this 51-section, or in the case of a municipal police department, in accordance 52-with the department's policy adopted by the department and based on 53-guidelines maintained pursuant to subsection (j) of this section, 54-concerning the use of body-worn recording equipment. 55-(2) Each police officer shall wear body-worn recording equipment on 56-such officer's outer -most garment and shall position such equipment 57-above the midline of such officer's torso when using such equipment. 58-(3) Body-worn recording equipment used pursuant to this section 59-shall conform to the minimal technical specifications approved 60-pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, except that a police officer may 61-use body -worn recording equipment that does not conform to the 62-minimal technical specifications approved pursuant to subsection (b) of 63-this section, if such equipment was purchased prior to January 1, 2016, 64-by the law enforcement unit employing such officer. 65-(4) Each law enforcement unit shall require usage of a dashboard 66-camera in each police patrol vehicle used by any police officer employed 67-by such unit in accordance with the unit's policy adopted by the unit 68-and based on guidelines maintained pursuant to subsection (j) of this 69-section, concerning dashboard cameras. 70-(d) Except as required by state or federal law, no person employed by 71-a law enforcement unit shall edit, erase, copy, share or otherwise alter 72-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 4--or distribute in any manner any recording made by body -worn 73-recording equipment or a dashboard camera or the data from such 74-recording. 75-(e) A police officer may review a recording from his or her body-worn 76-recording equipment or a dashboard camera (1) in order to assist such 77-officer with the preparation of a report or otherwise assist such officer 78-in the performance of his or her duties, or (2) if such officer is the subject 79-of a disciplinary investigation and such a recording is being considered 80-as part of the investigation. 81-(f) (1) If a police officer is giving a formal statement about the use of 82-force and the use of force was captured in a recording from body -worn 83-recording equipment or a dashboard camera, the officer shall have the 84-right to review such recording in the presence of the officer's attorney 85-or labor representative. Not later than forty -eight hours following an 86-officer's review of the recording, or if the officer does not review the 87-recording, not later than ninety-six hours following a request for public 88-disclosure of the recording, whichever is earlier, such recording shall be 89-disclosed, upon request, to the public, subject to the provisions of 90-subsection (g) of this section. Public disclosure may be delayed if the 91-officer, due to a medical or physical response or an acute psychological 92-stress response to the incident, is not reasonably able to review a 93-recording under this subdivision, but in no event shall disclosure be 94-delayed more than one hundred forty -four hours following the 95-recorded event. 96-(2) If a request is made for public disclosure of a recording from body-97-worn recording equipment or a dashboard camera that captured an 98-alleged use of force and a police officer has not been asked to give a 99-formal statement about the alleged use of force, any police officer whose 100-image or voice is captured on the recording shall have the right to 101-review such recording in the presence of the officer's attorney or labor 102-representative. Not later than forty -eight hours following an officer's 103-review of a recording under this subdivision, or if the officer does not 104-review the recording, not later than ninety -six hours following the 105-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 5--request for disclosure, whichever is earlier, such recording shall be 106-disclosed to the public, subject to the provisions of subsection (g) of this 107-section. Public disclosure may be delayed if the officer, due to a medical 108-or physical response or an acute psychological stress response to the 109-incident, is not reasonably able to review a recording under this 110-subdivision, but in no event shall disclosure be delayed more than one 111-hundred forty-four hours following the recorded event. 112-(g) (1) Except as otherwise provided by any agreement between a law 113-enforcement unit and the federal government, no police officer shall use 114-body-worn recording equipment or a dashboard camera, if applicable, 115-to intentionally record (A) a communication with other law enforcement 116-unit personnel, except that which may be recorded as the officer 117-performs his or her duties, (B) an encounter with an undercover officer 118-or informant or an officer performing detective work described in 119-guidelines developed pursuant to subsection (j) of this section, (C) when 120-an officer is on break or is otherwise engaged in a personal activity, (D) 121-a person undergoing a medical or psychological evaluation, procedure 122-or treatment, (E) any person other than a suspect to a crime if an officer 123-is wearing such equipment in a hospital or other medical facility setting, 124-or (F) in a mental health facility, unless responding to a call involving a 125-suspect to a crime who is thought to be present in the facility. 126-(2) No record created using body -worn recording equipment or a 127-dashboard camera of (A) an occurrence or situation described in 128-subparagraphs (A) to (F), inclusive, of subdivision (1) of this subsection, 129-(B) a scene of an incident that involves (i) a victim of domestic or sexual 130-abuse, (ii) a victim of homicide or suicide, or (iii) a deceased victim of an 131-accident, if disclosure could reasonably be expected to constitute an 132-unwarranted invasion of personal privacy in the case of any such victim 133-described in this subparagraph, or (C) a minor, shall be subject to 134-disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, [as defined in section 135-1-200,] and any such record shall be confidential and redacted in 136-accordance with section 2 of this act, except that a record of a minor shall 137-be disclosed if (i) the minor and the parent or guardian of such minor 138-consent to the disclosure of such record, or, if the minor is an involved 139-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 6--person, the minor's parent or guardian is the requesting party or an 140-involved person, (ii) a police officer is the subject of an allegation of 141-misconduct made by such minor or the parent or guardian of such 142-minor, and the person representing such officer in an investigation of 143-such alleged misconduct requests disclosure of such record for the sole 144-purpose of preparing a defense to such allegation, or (iii) a person is 145-charged with a crime and defense counsel for such person requests 146-disclosure of such record for the sole purpose of assisting in such 147-person's defense and the discovery of such record as evidence is 148-otherwise discoverable. 149-(h) No police officer shall use body-worn recording equipment prior 150-to being trained in accordance with section 7 -294s in the use of such 151-equipment and in the retention of data created by such equipment. A 152-law enforcement unit shall ensure that each police officer such unit 153-employs receives such training at least annually and is trained on the 154-proper care and maintenance of such equipment. 155-(i) If a police officer is aware that any body -worn recording 156-equipment or dashboard camera is lost, damaged or malfunctioning, 157-such officer shall inform such officer's supervisor in writing as soon as 158-is practicable. Upon receiving such information, the supervisor shall 159-ensure that the body -worn recording equipment or dashboard camera 160-is inspected and repaired or replaced, as necessary. Each police officer 161-shall inspect and test body-worn recording equipment prior to each shift 162-to verify proper functioning, and shall notify such officer's supervisor 163-of any problems with such equipment. 164-(j) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection 165-and the Police Officer Standards and Training Council shall jointly 166-maintain guidelines pertaining to the use of body -worn recording 167-equipment and dashboard cameras, including the type of detective 168-work an officer might engage in that should not be recorded, retention 169-of data created by such equipment and dashboard cameras and methods 170-for safe and secure storage of such data. On and after October 1, 2024, 171-such guidelines shall contain provisions concerning under which 172-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 7--circumstances an officer shall not pause recording on such equipment. 173-The guidelines shall not require a law enforcement unit to store such 174-data for a period longer than one year, except in the case where the unit 175-knows the data is pertinent to any ongoing civil, criminal or 176-administrative matter. Each law enforcement unit and any police officer 177-and any other employee of such unit who may have access to such data 178-shall adhere to such guidelines. The commissioner and council may 179-update and reissue such guidelines, as the commissioner and council 180-determine necessary. The commissioner and council shall, upon 181-issuance of such guidelines or any update to such guidelines, submit 182-such guidelines in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a to the 183-joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance 184-of matters relating to the judiciary and public safety. 185-(k) (1) Not later than October 1, 2023, the Police Officer Standards and 186-Training Council, in consultation with the Institute for Municipal and 187-Regional Policy at The University of Connecticut, shall prescribe a form 188-to be used by law enforcement units to report each unit's compliance 189-with the provisions of subsection (c) of this section. Such form shall 190-require the compilation of information including, but not limited to, (A) 191-the number of body -worn recording devices in operation in a law 192-enforcement unit, (B) the number of dashboard cameras in operation in 193-a law enforcement unit, (C) the number of police patrol vehicles not 194-equipped with a dashboard camera in a law enforcement unit and the 195-reasons such vehicles are not so equipped, (D) information regarding 196-any incidents in which a police officer of a law enforcement unit was 197-found in an internal investigation conducted by such unit to have 198-violated such unit's policy regarding the use of body -worn recording 199-equipment or dashboard cameras, and (E) any other information 200-deemed necessary. 201-(2) Not later than January 1, 2024, and annually thereafter, each law 202-enforcement unit shall submit a report on the form prescribed pursuant 203-to subdivision (1) of this subsection concerning the unit's compliance 204-with the provisions of subsection (c) of this section to the Institute for 205-Municipal and Regional Policy at The University of Connecticut. The 206-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 8--institute shall post such reports on the institute's Internet web site. 207-(3) Not later than July 1, 2024, and annually thereafter, the Institute 208-for Municipal and Regional Policy at The University of Connecticut 209-shall, within available appropriations, review the reports submitted 210-pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection, and report the results of 211-such review and any recommendations as a result of such review to the 212-Governor, the Police Officer Standards and Training Council, the 213-Criminal Justice Policy and Planning Division within the Office of Policy 214-and Management and, in accordance with the provisions of section 11 -215-4a, the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having 216-cognizance of matters relating to the judiciary and public safety and 217-security. 218-Sec. 2. (NEW) ( Effective October 1, 2026 ) (a) Except as provided in 219-subsections (b) and (c) of this section, any public agency, as defined in 220-section 1-200 of the general statutes, that maintains a copy of a record 221-created using body-worn recording equipment or a dashboard camera 222-pursuant to section 29-6d of the general statutes, as amended by this act, 223-may charge the requesting party a redaction fee for any such record that 224-requires redaction in accordance with the provisions of this section. 225-Such fee shall compensate the public agency for the time spent redacting 226-any portion of the requested record as required or authorized by state 227-or federal law, including, but not limited to, the provisions of subsection 228-(g) of section 29-6d of the general statutes, as amended by this act. Such 229-fee shall be calculated as follows: 230-(1) The public agency shall not charge the requesting party for the 231-time spent searching for the applicable record that is responsive to the 232-request. 233-(2) The first four hours of labor costs incurred by the public agency in 234-redacting the requested record shall not be charged to the requesting 235-party. 236-(3) Except as provided in subsection (c) of this section, any additional 237-labor costs associated with any time necessary to redact the requested 238-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 9--record beyond the time set forth in subdivision (2) of this subsection 239-may be charged to the requesting party at a rate not to exceed the hourly 240-wage of the lowest -paid employee with the requisite training for 241-redacting the responsive record. For purposes of this subdivision, the 242-hourly wage of an employee shall be based upon the employee's base 243-salary and shall not include benefits. The responding agency shall not 244-charge the requesting party for the services of any attorney hired by the 245-responding agency to conduct a second review of the requested record 246-or any company providing digital management services to the 247-responding agency. 248-(4) Any fee charged to a requesting party under this subsection shall 249-not exceed one hundred dollars per hour of the actual length of time of 250-the record requested. In calculating the fee under this subsection, the 251-public agency may round up the actual length of time of the record 252-requested to the nearest half hour at a rate of fifty dollars per half hour. 253-(5) If the amount to be charged to the requesting party in accordance 254-with subdivision (3) of this subsection is estimated to exceed two 255-hundred fifty dollars, the public agency shall inform the requesting 256-party of the estimated fee and may require prepayment of such fee prior 257-to redacting the requested record. If the amount of prepaid fees exceeds 258-the actual labor costs incurred by the public agency in redacting the 259-requested record, the public agency shall reimburse the requesting 260-party for any difference between the prepaid amount and actual cost. 261-(b) The public agency shall waive any fee authorized under this 262-section if required under subsection (d) of section 1 -212 of the general 263-statutes. 264-(c) (1) A public agency shall not charge a fee to any requesting party 265-who is (A) an involved person in the record requested, (B) the parent or 266-legal guardian of an involved person, or (C) an attorney representing an 267-involved person in any civil, criminal or administrative matter. 268-(2) A public agency shall not charge a fee to any other requesting 269-party if (A) the record depicts a police officer involved in a shooting, a 270-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 10--police officer involved in a motor vehicle accident or a police officer 271-giving a formal statement about the use of force, or (B) (i) there is an 272-allegation of misconduct concerning the police officer involved, or (ii) 273-the police officer involved is the subject of a disciplinary investigation, 274-subject to any limitations on disclosure set forth in subsection (g) of 275-section 29-6d of the general statutes, as amended by this act. 276-(d) The public agency shall maintain an original, unredacted copy of 277-any requested record that is redacted for public dissemination in 278-accordance with the provisions of this section. 279-(e) If the Freedom of Information Commission determines that a 280-public agency has violated any provision of this section, the Freedom of 281-Information Commission may order the public agency to refund any 282-payment made under this section. 283-Sec. 3. Subsections (a) and (b) of section 1 -212 of the general statutes 284-are repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof ( Effective 285-October 1, 2026): 286-(a) Any person applying in writing shall receive, promptly upon 287-request, a plain, facsimile, electronic or certified copy of any public 288-record. The type of copy provided shall be within the discretion of the 289-public agency, except (1) the agency shall provide a certified copy 290-whenever requested, and (2) if the applicant does not have access to a 291-computer or facsimile machine, the public agency shall not send the 292-applicant an electronic or facsimile copy. [The] Except as provided in 293-section 2 of this act, the fee for any copy provided in accordance with 294-the Freedom of Information Act: 295-(A) By an executive, administrative or legislative office of the state, a 296-state agency or a department, institution, bureau, board, commission, 297-authority or official of the state, including a committee of, or created by, 298-such an office, agency, department, institution, bureau, board, 299-commission, authority or official, and also including any judicial office, 300-official or body or committee thereof but only in respect to its or their 301-administrative functions, shall not exceed twenty -five cents per page; 302-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 11--and 303-(B) By all other public agencies, as defined in section 1 -200, shall not 304-exceed fifty cents per page. If any copy provided in accordance with said 305-Freedom of Information Act requires a transcription, or if any person 306-applies for a transcription of a public record, the fee for such 307-transcription shall not exceed the cost thereof to the public agency. 308-(b) The fee for any copy provided in accordance with subsection (a) 309-of section 1-211 shall not exceed the cost thereof to the public agency. 310-[In] Except as provided in section 2 of this act, in determining such costs 311-for a copy, other than for a printout which exists at the time that the 312-agency responds to the request for such copy, an agency may include 313-only: 314-(1) An amount equal to the hourly salary attributed to all agency 315-employees engaged in providing the requested computer-stored public 316-record, including their time performing the formatting or programming 317-functions necessary to provide the copy as requested, but not including 318-search or retrieval costs except as provided in subdivision (4) of this 319-subsection; 320-(2) An amount equal to the cost to the agency of engaging an outside 321-professional electronic copying service to provide such copying 322-services, if such service is necessary to provide the copying as requested; 323-(3) The actual cost of the storage devices or media provided to the 324-person making the request in complying with such request; and 325-(4) The computer time charges incurred by the agency in providing 326-the requested computer -stored public record where another agency or 327-contractor provides the agency with computer storage and retrieval 328-services. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the fee for 329-any copy of the names of registered voters shall not exceed three cents 330-per name delivered or the cost thereof to the public agency, as 331-determined pursuant to this subsection, whichever is less. The 332-Department of Administrative Services shall provide guidelines to 333-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 12--agencies regarding the calculation of the fees charged for copies of 334-computer-stored public records to ensure that such fees are reasonable 335-and consistent among agencies. 336-This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following-sections:--Section 1 October 1, 2026 29-6d-Sec. 2 October 1, 2026 New section-Sec. 3 October 1, 2026 1-212(a) and (b)--GAE Joint Favorable--SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 13--The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of-the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not-represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,-fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional-knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final-products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.--OFA Fiscal Note--State Impact:-Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $-Various State Agencies Various --Potential-Revenue Gain-See Below See Below-Note: Various=Various-Municipal Impact:-Municipalities Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $-Municipal Police Departments Potential-Revenue-Gain-See Below See Below--Explanation-The bill results in a potential revenue gain to various state agencies 1-and municipal police departments by allowing such agencies, under-certain circumstances, to charge a fee for redacting body and dashboard-camera recordings prior to disclosure under the Freedom of Information-Act. The bill prohibits an agency from charging a fee for the first four-hours of its labor costs for redacting the requested record. Beyond this,-such agencies may charge up to $100 per hour of the requested-recording’s actual duration.-The Out Years-The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would--1 These agencies include, but are not limited to, the Connecticut State Police, the-University of Connecticut Police Department, the police departments of the-Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, the Department of Mental Health and-Addiction Services Police, and the Environmental Conservation Police in the-Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 14--continue into the future subject to the number of requested records-eligible for redaction fees.--SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 15+Researcher: SP Page 1 3/26/26OLR Bill AnalysissSB 225@@ -493,11 +32,11 @@things, it requires that recordings showing certain confidential events(such as encounters with undercover officers) be redacted and permitsdisclosure of a record of a minor in additional circumstances.-SB225 File No. 202+Lastly, the bill makes technical and conforming changes.+2026SB-00225-R000202-BA.DOCX-SB225 / File No. 202 16+Researcher: SP Page 2 3/26/26-Lastly, the bill makes technical and conforming changes.EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026REDACTION FEESFee Calculation@@ -527,15 +66,15 @@The bill allows the Freedom of Information Commission (FOIC) toorder a refund of a payment or prepayment if it finds that a publicagency violated these fee provisions.-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 17-Fee Prohibitions and WaiversThe bill prohibits public agencies from charging any redaction fee toa requesting party who is an (1) involved person in the requested record;+2026SB-00225-R000202-BA.DOCX++Researcher: SP Page 3 3/26/26+(2) involved person’s parent or legal guardian; or (3) attorney-representing an involved person in a civil, crim inal, or administrative+representing an involved person in a civil, criminal, or administrativematter. It also prohibits fees from being charged:1. for records that depict a police officer (a) involved in a shootingor motor vehicle accident or (b) giving a formal statement about@@ -562,13 +101,13 @@the (1) minor is an involved person and (2) parent or guardian is arequesting party or also an involved person.Additional Redaction Requirements-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 18-The bill requires redaction of body and dashboard camera recordingsof any of the following, which under current law are confidential andgenerally exempt from disclosure under FOIA:+2026SB-00225-R000202-BA.DOCX++Researcher: SP Page 4 3/26/26+1. communications between law enforcement unit personnel,except those that may be recorded as an officer does his or herduties;@@ -594,14 +133,14 @@it:1. the hourly salary attributed to all agency employees engaged inproviding the requested record (including their time doing-SB225 File No. 202--SB225 / File No. 202 19-necessary formatting or programming functions, but not searchor retrieval costs);2. the cost of an outside professional electronic copying service, ifneeded;+2026SB-00225-R000202-BA.DOCX++Researcher: SP Page 5 3/26/26+3. the actual cost of the storage devices or media given to therequestor; and4. computer time charges if a contractor or another agency provides
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