JANUARY 2025 

Happy New Year from the Data Practices Office!

The Data Practices Office is ringing in the new year, and we want to provide our annual reminder of the different online resources we have available!

The Data Practices Office website offers a variety of guidance on the Data Practices Act and Open Meeting Law. You can find information about requesting an advisory opinion from the Commissioner of Administration as well as review all past opinions on data practices and OML issues through our opinion search tool. You can also learn about any upcoming trainings that we'll be conducting on data practices topics.

We have also added several new videos on our YouTube page, including a video describing the duties of an entity's responsible authority as well as a webinar about traveling data.

As always, feel free to contact our office with any questions you have about data practices or the OML. We are here to help, and happy new year!

New Reporting Requirements for Cybersecurity Incidents Started December 1, 2024

Starting December 1, 2024, public agencies and government contractors are obligated to report adverse cybersecurity incidents to Minnesota IT Services (MNIT) and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) as required by Minnesota Statutes, section 16E.36.

You can learn more about these reporting requirements on MNIT's website, which provides information about this new requirement, entities required to make reports, the types of incidents to report, as well as when and how to make a report.

Upcoming Data Practices Trainings

Open Meeting Law Webinar

The Data Practices Office will be hosting a free Open Meeting Law Potpourri webinar on Wednesday, January 8 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

This webinar will provide a refresher on the requirements of the OML as well as a discussion about the top questions we've received about open meetings. Data Practices Office staff will also hold a live Q&A session.

Registration for this free webinar is available on our website, and you can view recordings of past webinars on our YouTube Channel.

Law Enforcement Data Remote Workshop

The Data Practices Office will be hosting a Law Enforcement Data Remote Workshop on Tuesday, January 28. The workshop will provide a primer (or refresher) about the key provisions in Minnesota law governing law enforcement data, including:

• Discussion of general legal requirements, including criminal investigative data, juvenile data, traffic accident data, body camera video data, and more;
• Real-life problem solving scenarios based on actual inquiries; and
• Time for questions and answers about the day-to-day issues that involve law enforcement data.

The workshop will be held remotely on WebEx, and it will not require in-person attendance. The cost to attend this workshop is $250 per person.

More information about this workshop is available on our website.

Advisory Opinion Updates

The Commissioner of Administration has not issued any Advisory Opinions since the last FYi Newsletter.