Georgia Expands Open Records Act to Contractors
The Georgia Supreme Court has broadened the state's Open Records Act, ruling that it now applies to private contractors that handle public business. This change increases transparency requirements for EdTech vendors and other private entities working with public institutions in the state, potentially exposing more compliance data to public view.
- The pivotal case, *Milliron v. Antonakakis*, decided on August 13, 2024, involved a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology who also performed work for the university as a private contractor. - This unanimous decision by the Georgia Supreme Court establishes that private entities can be considered "custodians" of public records and that citizens can request records directly from them, not just the public agency they work for. - The ruling reverses a 2023 Georgia Court of Appeals decision which had asserted that requests for records held by contractors had to be submitted to the government agency's designated open records officer. - The Georgia Open Records Act (O.C.G.A. § 50-18-70 et seq.) defines "public records" broadly to include materials prepared and maintained by a private entity performing a service for a public agency. - This expansion of the Open Records Act means that private businesses in sectors like IT, construction, and healthcare now face potential civil or criminal liability for non-compliance with public records requests. - This legal development coincides with the upcoming April 24, 2026, deadline for public colleges and universities to comply with the Department of Justice's new rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. - The federal Title II rule mandates that all digital content and services provided by public institutions, including those from third-party vendors, must conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA standards.
