The Kentucky Court of Appeals ruling that text messages by government officials on their personal phones are subject to state Open Records laws is a victory for the citizens of Kentucky. That’s according to Amye Bensenhaver, the co-director of the nonprofit Kentucky Open Government Coalition and a former longtime employee of the state Attorney General’s Office. Friday’s ruling overturns a lower court’s decision.
“The Court of Appeals just rejected, absolutely, the narrow definition that actually is, without question, a misinterpretation a miss calculation of the broad scope of the Open Records law.”
The original suit was filed in 2021 against the state Fish and Wildlife Resources Department, which was defended in court by Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s office. Bensenhaver said members of the General Assembly may try to topple Friday’s decision with new laws.
“You can be certain that if this holding results in a change in the statute, and we are deprived of access to these records, that all public business of any importance, certainly of any sensitivity, will be conducted on private devices and accounts.”
Bensenhaver said either Fish and Wildlife and the AG’s office, or both, could appeal the Court of Appeals ruling.
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