SB00250 • 2026

AN ACT CONCERNING A STUDY OF STATE AGENCY RESPONSE TIMES TO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUESTS.

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Government Oversight Committee
Last action: 2026-04-01
Official status: File Number 289
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official text states the report must include information about when 'unreasonable' response times led to complaints; it does not define what counts as unreasonable.

Study on How Fast State Agencies Answer Public Record Requests

This law requires the Office of Policy and Management to study how long state agencies take to answer Freedom of Information Act requests.

What This Bill Does

Requires the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management to conduct a study on response times for public record requests made under the Freedom of Information Act.
Sets a deadline of January 15, 2027, for submitting the final report to the government oversight committee.
Mandates that the report include average state agency response times.
Requires the report to list cases where unreasonable response times were the basis of complaints filed with the Freedom of Information Commission.
Asks the study team to suggest new laws if needed based on their findings.

Who It Names or Affects

The Office of Policy and Management, which must run the study.
State agencies that receive requests for public records under the Freedom of Information Act.
Members of the General Assembly's government oversight committee who will review the report.

Terms To Know

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA): A law that allows people to ask state agencies for public records and documents, as defined in section 1-200 of the general statutes.
Office of Policy and Management: The state office responsible for conducting this study on agency response times.

Limits and Unknowns

The law does not set a specific time limit that agencies must meet to answer requests.
The final cost of the study is estimated at up to $300,000 and depends partly on how many complaints are reviewed.

Bill History

2026-04-01 LCO
Reported Out of Legislative Commissioners' Office
2026-04-01 Connecticut General Assembly
Favorable Report, Tabled for the Calendar, Senate
2026-04-01 Connecticut General Assembly
Senate Calendar Number 200
2026-04-01 LCO
File Number 289
2026-03-26 LCO
Referred to Office of Legislative Research and Office of Fiscal Analysis 03/31/26 5:00 PM
2026-03-17 GOS
Joint Favorable
2026-03-17 LCO
Filed with Legislative Commissioners' Office
2026-02-20 Connecticut General Assembly
Public Hearing 02/24
2026-02-19 Connecticut General Assembly
Referred to Joint Committee on Government Oversight

Official Summary Text

To require the Office of Policy and Management to conduct a study of state agency response times to Freedom of Information Act requests.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Senate
SB250 / File No. 289 1

General Assembly File No. 289
February Session, 2026 Senate Bill No. 250

Senate, April 1, 2026

The Committee on Government Oversight reported through
SEN. GADKAR-WILCOX of the 22nd Dist., Chairperson of the
Committee on the part of the Senate, that the bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING A STUDY OF STATE AGENCY RESPONSE
TIMES TO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUESTS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. (Effective from passage) The Secretary of the Office of Policy 1
and Management shall conduct a study of the response times of state 2
agencies to requests for public records made under the Freedom of 3
Information Act, as defined in section 1-200 of the general statutes. Not 4
later than January 15, 2027, the secretary shall submit a report of the 5
findings of such study, in accordance with the provisions of section 11 -6
4a of the general statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General 7
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to government 8
oversight. Such report shall include a summary of average state agency 9
response times, information about when unreasonable response times 10
were the basis of a complaint filed with the Freedom of Information 11
Commission and any recommendations for legislation to address any 12
findings of such study. 13
SB250 File No. 289

SB250 / File No. 289 2

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 from passage New section

GOS Joint Favorable

SB250 File No. 289

SB250 / File No. 289 3

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 $
Policy & Mgmt., Off. GF - Cost Up to
$300,000
None
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill requires the Office of Policy and Management (OPM) to
conduct a study on the response times of state agencies to Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA) requests and submit a report by January 15,
2027. This results in a one-time cost to OPM of up to $300,000 in FY 27
for a consultant to meet these requirements and complete a report
within the time frame.
The consultant will be responsible for developing a mechanism to
gather, organize, and report on this information. The cost is partly
dependent on the number of complaints regarding FOIA requests.1
The Out Years
None.

1 In 2024 there were approximately 855 complaints.
SB250 File No. 289

SB250 / File No. 289 4

OLR Bill Analysis
SB 250

AN ACT CONCERNING A STUDY OF STATE AGENCY RESPONSE
TIMES TO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUESTS.

SUMMARY
The Office of Legislative Research does not analyze Special Acts.
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Oversight Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 12 Nay 0 (03/17/2026)