[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 180 (Tuesday, September 17, 2002)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 58548-58550]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-23484]


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BROADCASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS

22 CFR Part 507


Sunshine Act

AGENCY: The Broadcasting Board of Governors.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

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SUMMARY: This regulation proposes to establish rules for implementing 
open meetings under the Sunshine Act for the Broadcasting Board of 
Governors (BBG or Agency).

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 2, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Send comments concerning the proposed rule to Carol M. 
Booker, Legal Counsel, Broadcasting Board of Governors, 330 
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20237.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carol M. Booker, Legal Counsel, at 
(202) 401-3736.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pub. L. 103-236, the United States 
Broadcasting Act of 1994, created the BBG within the United States 
Information Agency (USIA). By law, the bipartisan board consisted of 
nine members--eight members who were appointed by the President, by and 
with the advice and consent of the Senate, and the USIA Director.
    On October 21, 1998, President Clinton signed Pub. L. 105-277, the 
Omnibus Consolidated Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for 
Fiscal Year 1999. Contained as Division G of this legislation was the 
Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998, which reorganized 
the foreign affairs agencies of the U.S. Government. Under this 
reorganization, the Broadcasting Board of Governors became an 
independent Federal entity on October 1, 1999. Under the reorganization 
of the foreign affairs

[[Page 58549]]

agencies, the responsibilities of the Board remained intact, and the 
membership of the Board remained the same, except that the USIA 
Director was replaced by the Secretary of State.
    The BBG has responsibility for oversight of all United States 
sponsored, non-military broadcasting to foreign countries. The BBG 
oversees the operations of the International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB), 
which includes the worldwide broadcasting services of the Voice of 
America (VOA), WORLDNET, the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB), 
Engineering and Technical Operations. The BBG also oversees two grantee 
organizations, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Radio Free 
Asia (RFA). The Board members also serve as the members of the Board of 
Directors of both RFE/RL and RFA.
    The Board's authorities include, among others:
    [sbull] To review and evaluate the mission and operation of, and 
assess the quality, effectiveness, and professional integrity of, all 
such activities within the broad foreign policy objectives of the 
United States;
    [sbull] To make and supervise grants for broadcasting and related 
activities of RFE/RL and RFA;
    [sbull] To review, evaluate and determine, at least annually, the 
addition or deletion of language services; and
    [sbull] To allocate funds appropriated for international 
broadcasting activities among the various elements of the IBB and 
grantees, subject to reprogramming notification.
    In total, the BBG broadcasting entities transmit more than 2,000 
hours of weekly programming in 61 languages to more than 100 million 
weekly listeners worldwide.
    The Sunshine Act (5 U.S.C. 552b) is a Federal Law that requires 
meetings of Federal Agencies to remain public and in most cases the 
time, place and subject matter of the meeting should be announced prior 
to its occurrence.
    In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 605(b), the BBG certifies that the 
rules do not have a significant adverse economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities. This rule is not considered 
significant regulatory action within the meaning of section 3(f) of 
Executive Order 12866, nor does this rule have Federalism implications 
warranting the preparation of a Federalism Assessment in accordance 
with Executive Order 12612.

    Dated: August 23, 2002.
Carol M. Booker,
Legal Counsel, Broadcasting Board of Governors.

List of Subjects in 22 CFR 507

    Sunshine Act.

    Accordingly, 22 CFR part 507 is proposed to be added to read as set 
forth below:

PART 507--RULES FOR IMPLEMENTING OPEN MEETINGS UNDER THE SUNSHINE 
ACT FOR THE BROADCASTING BOARD OF GOVERNORS

Sec.
507.1 General Policies.
507.2 Definitions.
507.3 Requirement for open meetings.
507.4 Grounds on which meetings may be closed.
507.5 Procedures for announcing meetings.
507.6 Procedures for closing meetings.
507.7 Reconsideration of opening or closing a meeting.
507.8 Recording keeping of closed meetings.

    Authority: Pub. L. 93-129, 87 Stat. 956, 5 U.S.C. 552b.


Sec.  507.1  General policies.

    The Broadcasting Board of Governors will provide the public with 
the fullest practical information regarding its decision making process 
while protecting the rights of individuals and its abilities to carry 
out its responsibilities.


Sec.  507.2  Definitions.

    The following definitions apply:
    (a) The term agency includes any establishment in the executive 
branch of the government 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. 
The Broadcasting Board of Governors is a government agency headed by a 
nine-member board, eight of whom are appointed by the President with 
the advice and consent of the Senate, and the ninth being the Secretary 
of State. Therefore, the Broadcasting Board of Governors is an 
``agency'' under these terms.
    (b) The term meeting means the deliberation of this Board where 
such deliberations determine or result in the joint conduct or 
disposition of official Board business.
    (c) The term member means an individual who belongs to the Board 
who has been appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate or 
is the Secretary of State.


Sec.  507.3  Requirement of open meetings.

    Members shall not jointly conduct or dispose of agency business 
other than in accordance with this section. Except as provided in Sec.  
507.4 every portion of every meeting of the agency shall be open to 
public observation.


Sec.  507.4  Grounds on which meetings may be closed.

    The Board shall open every portion of every meeting of the agency 
for public observation except where the agency determines that such 
portion or portions of the meeting or the disclosure of such 
information is likely to:
    (a) Disclose matters that are:
    (1) Specifically authorized under criteria established by an 
Executive order to be kept secret in the interests of national defense 
or foreign policy, and
    (2) In fact properly classified pursuant to such Executive order;
    (b) Relate solely to the internal personnel rules and practice of 
the agency;
    (c) Disclose matters specifically exempted from disclosure by 
statute: Provided, that such statute:
    (1) Requires that the matters be withheld from the public in such 
manner as to leave no discretion on the issue, or
    (2) Established practical criteria for withholding or refers to 
particular types of matters to be withheld;
    (d) Disclose trade secrets and commercial or financial information 
obtained from a person and privileged or confidential;
    (e) Involve accusing any person of a crime, or formally censuring 
any person;
    (f) Disclose information of a personal nature where disclosure 
would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;
    (g) Disclose investigatory records compiled for law enforcement 
purposes, 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:
    (1) Interfere with enforcement proceedings,
    (2) Deprive a person of a right to a fair trial on an impartial 
adjudication,
    (3) Constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy,
    (4) 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 source,
    (5) Disclose investigative techniques and procedures, or

[[Page 58550]]

    (6) Endanger the life or physical safety of law enforcement 
personnel;
    (h) Disclose information, the premature disclosure of which would 
be likely to significantly frustrate implementation of a proposed 
agency action. This shall not apply in any instance where the Board has 
already disclosed to the public the content or the nature of its 
proposed action, or where the Board is required by law to make such 
disclosures on its own initiative prior to taking final Board action on 
such proposal; or
    (i) Specifically concern the Board's issuance of a subpoena, or the 
Board'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 Board of a particular case of 
formal agency adjudication, or otherwise involving a determination on 
the record after opportunity for a hearing.


Sec.  507.5  Procedures for announcing meetings.

    (a) In the case of each meeting, the Board shall make public, at 
least one week before the meeting, 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 Board to 
respond to requests for information about the meeting. Such 
announcement shall be made unless a majority of the members of the 
Board determine by a recorded vote that such meeting must be called at 
an earlier date, in which case the Board shall make public announcement 
of the time, place, subject matter of such meeting and whether it is 
open or closed to the public, at the earliest practical time.
    (b) Immediately following the public announcement, the Board will 
publish it in the Federal Register.


Sec.  507.6  Procedures for closing meetings.

    (a) The closing of a meeting shall occur only when:
    (1) A majority of the membership of the Board votes to take such 
action. A separate vote of the Board members shall be taken with 
respect to each Board meeting, a portion or portions of which are 
proposed to be closed to the public pursuant to Sec.  507.4, or with 
respect to any information which is proposed to be withheld under Sec.  
507.4. 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 Board member 
participating in such vote shall be recorded and no proxies shall be 
allowed.
    (2) Whenever any person whose interest may be directly affected by 
a portion of the meeting requests that the Board close such a portion 
to the public for any of the reasons referred to in Sec.  507.4 (e), 
(f) or (g), the Board, upon request of any of its Board members, shall 
take a recorded vote, whether to close such portion of the meeting.
    (b) Within one day of any vote taken, the Board shall make publicly 
available a written copy of such vote reflecting the vote of each 
member on the question and full written explanation of its action 
closing the entire or portion of the meeting together with a list of 
all persons expected to attend the meeting and their affiliation.
    (c) The Board shall announce the time, place and subject matter of 
the meeting at least eight (8) days before the meeting.
    (d) For every closed meeting, the Board's Legal Counsel shall 
publicly certify that, in his or her opinion, the meeting may be closed 
to the public and shall state each relevant exemptive provision. A copy 
of such certification, together with a statement from the presiding 
officer of the meeting setting forth the time and place of the meeting, 
and the persons present, shall be retained by the Board.


Sec.  507.7  Reconsideration of opening or closing a meeting.

    The time or place of a Board meeting may be changed following the 
public announcement only if the Board 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 a portion of 
a meeting, to the public, may be changed following the public 
announcement only if a majority of the Board members determines by a 
recorded vote that Board business so requires and that no earlier 
announcement of the change was possible, and the Board publicly 
announces such change and the vote of each member upon such change at 
the earliest practicable time.


Sec.  507.8  Recording keeping of closed meetings.

    (a) The Board shall maintain an electronic recording of the 
proceedings of each meeting, or portion of a meeting, closed to the 
public.
    (b) The Board, after review by the Chairman, shall make promptly 
available to the public in a place easily accessible to the public, a 
complete transcript or electronic record of the discussion of any item 
on the agenda, or any item of testimony of any witness received at the 
Board meeting, except for such item or items of such discussion or 
testimony as the Board determines to contain information which may be 
withheld under Sec.  507.4. Copies of such record, disclosing the 
identity of each speaker, shall be furnished to any person at the 
actual cost of duplication. The Board shall maintain a complete 
transcript or electronic copy of each meeting, or portion of a meeting, 
closed to the public, for a period of at least two years after such 
meeting, or until one year after the conclusion of any Board proceeding 
with respect to which the meeting or portion was held, whichever occurs 
later.

[FR Doc. 02-23484 Filed 9-16-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8610-01-P