formation as indicates efforts to administer fully this section.

(q) Effect of other laws.

No agency shall rely on any exemption contained in section 552 of this title to withhold from an individual any record which is otherwise accessible to such individual under the provisions of this section.

OPEN MEETINGS. DEFINITIONS; EXCEPTIONS; RECORDED VOTING, PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF VOTE, REGULATION FOR CLOSED MEETINGS, PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT; SCHEDULING, CHANGES, PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT, PUBLICATION IN FEDERAL REGISTER; CERTIFICATION FOR CLOSED MEETING, TRANSCRIPTS, RECORDINGS OR MINUTES, PUBLIC AVAILABILITY, RETENTION; IMPLEMENTING REGULATIONS; JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS; LITIGATION COSTS, ASSESSMENT; REPORT TO CONGRESS (90 Stat. 1241; 5 U.S.C. 552b).

Sec. 552b. Open meetings.

(a) For purposes of this section

(1) the term "agency" means any agency, as
defined in section 552(e) of this title, headed by
a collegial body composed of two or more
individual members, a majority of whom are
appointed to such position by the President
with the advice and consent of the Senate, and
any subdivision thereof authorized to act on
behalf of the agency;

(2) the term "meeting" means the deliberations
of at least the number of individual agency
members required to take action on behalf of
the agency where such deliberations determine
or result in the joint conduct or disposition of
official agency business, but does not include
deliberations required or permitted by
subsection (d) or (e); and

(3) the term "member" means an individual who

belongs to a collegial body heading an agency. (b) Members shall not jointly conduct or dispose of agency business other than in accordance with

Definitions.

every portion of every meeting of an agency shall be open to public observation.

(c) Except in a case where the agency finds that the public interest requires otherwise, the second sentence of subsection (b) shall not apply to any portion of an agency meeting, and the requirements of subsections (d) and (e) shall not apply to any information pertaining to such meeting otherwise required by this section to be disclosed to the public, where the agency properly determines that such portion or portions of its meeting or the disclosure of such information is likely to

(1) disclose matters that are (A) specifically authorized under criteria established by an Executive order to be kept secret in the inter ests of national defense or foreign policy and (B) in fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order;

(2) relate solely to the internal personnel rules and practices of an agency;

(3) disclose matters specifically exempted from disclosure by statute (other than section 552 of this title), provided that such statute (A) requires that the matters be withheld from the public in such a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue, or (B) establishes particular criteria for withholding or refers to particular types of matters to be withheld;

(4) disclose trade secrets and commercial or financial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential;

(5) involve accusing any person of a crime, o formally censuring any person;

(6) disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;

(7) disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement purposes, or or information which if written would be contained in such records, but only to the extent that the production of such records or information would (A) interfere with enforcement proceedings, (B) deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or an impartial adjudication, (C) constitute an unwar

ranted invasion of personal privacy, (D) disclose the identity of a confidential source and, in the case of a record compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation, or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, confidential information furnished only by the confidential source, (E) disclose investigative techniques and procedures, or (F) endanger the life or physical safety of law enforcement personnel;

(8) disclose information contained in or related to examination, operating, or condition reports prepared by, on behalf of, or for the use of an agency responsible for the regulation or supervision of financial institutions;

(9) disclose information the premature disclosure of which would

(A) in the case of an agency which regulates currencies, securities, commodities, or financial institutions, be likely to (i) lead to significant financial speculation in currencies, securities, or commodities, or (ii) significantly endanger the stability of any financial institution; or

(B) in the case of any agency, be likely to significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed agency action,

except that subparagraph (B) shall not apply in any instance where the agency has already disclosed to the public the content or nature of its proposed action, or where the agency is required by law to make such disclosure on its own initiative prior to taking final agency action on such proposal; or

(10) specifically concern the agency's issuance of a subpena, or the agency's participation in a civil action or proceeding, an action in a foreign court or international tribunal, or an arbitration, or the initiation, conduct, or disposition by the agency of a particular case of formal agency adjudication pursuant to the proce

Recorded voting.

Copies, availability.

Meeting closure, regulation.

involving a determination on the record after

opportunity for a hearing.

(d) (1) Action under subsection (c) shall be taken only when a majority of the entire membership of the agency (as defined in subsection (a)(1)) votes to take such action. A separate vote of the agency members shall be taken with respect to each agency meeting a portion or portions of which are proposed to be closed to the public pursuant to subsection (c), or with respect to any information which is proposed to be withheld under subsection (c). A single vote may be taken with respect to a series of meetings, a portion or portions of which are proposed to be closed to the public, or with respect to any information concerning such series of meetings, so long as each meeting in such series involves the same particular matters and is scheduled to be held not more than thirty days after the initial meeting in such series. The vote of each agency member participating in such vote shall be recorded and no proxies shall be allowed.

(2) Whenever any person whose interests may be directly affected by a portion of a meeting requests that the agency close such portion to the public for any of the reasons referred to in paragraph (5), (6), or (7) of subsection (c), the agency, upon request of any one of its members, shall vote by recorded vote whether to close such meeting.

(3) Within one day of any vote taken pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2), the agency shall make publicly available a written copy of such vote reflecting the vote of each member on the question. If a portion of a meeting is to be closed to the public, the agency shall, within one day of the vote taken pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, make publicly available a full written explanation of its action closing the portion together with a list of all persons expected to attend the meeting and their affiliation.

(4) Any agency, a majority of whose meetings may properly be closed to the public pursuant to paragraph (4), (8), (9) (A), or (10) of subsection (c), or any combination thereof, may provide by regulation for the closing of such meetings or portions thereof

in the event that a majority of the members of the
agency votes by recorded vote at the beginning of
such meeting, or portion thereof, to close the ex-
empt portion or portions of the meeting, and a copy
of such vote, reflecting the vote of each member on
the question, is made available to the public. The
provisions of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of this
subsection and subsection (e) shall not apply to any
portion of a meeting to which such regulations ap-
ply: Provided, That the agency shall, except to the Public
extent that such information is exempt from disclo-
sure under the provisions of subsection (c), provide
the public with public announcement of the time,
place, and subject matter of the meeting and of
each portion thereof at the earliest practicable
time.

announcement.

announcement.

(e) (1) In the case of each meeting, the agency Scheduling, public shall make public announcement, at least one week before the meeting, of the time, place, and subject matter of the meeting, whether it is to be open or closed to the public, and the name and phone number of the official designated by the agency to respond to requests for information about the meeting. Such announcement shall be made unless a majority of the members of the agency determines by a recorded vote that agency business requires that such meeting be called at an earlier date, in which case the agency shall make public announcement of the time, place, and subject matter of such meeting, and whether open or closed to the public, at the earliest practicable time.

(2) The time or place of a meeting may be changed following the public announcement required by paragraph (1) only if the agency publicly announces such change at the earliest practicable time. The subject matter of a meeting, or the determination of the agency to open or close a meeting, or portion of a meeting, to the public, may be changed following the public announcement required by this subsection only if (A) a majority of the entire membership of the agency determines by a recorded vote that agency business so requires and that no earlier announcement of the change was possible, and (B)

Scheduling announcement.

changes, public