FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACTS, FEDERAL DATA COLLECTIONS, AND DISCLOSURE STATUTES APPLICABLE TO HIGHWAY PROJECTS AND THE DISCOVERY PROCESS

State highway departments and transportation agencies have a continuing need to keep abreast of operating practices and legal elements of specific problems in highway law. This report is a new paper, which continues NCHRP's policy of keeping departments up-to-date on laws that will affect their operations. This paper will be published in a future addendum to "Selected Studies in Highway Law" (SSHL). The states have increasingly enacted freedom of information acts; federal statutes require the collection of certain data pertaining to potentially hazardous or unsafe locations on highways; and, the 23 U.S.C. Section 409 restricts the discovery and admissibility of data gathered and compiled to evaluate potential accident or hazardous highway sites. This report assesses these federal and state statutes and the impact of each type of statute in selected jurisdictions. It should be useful to attorneys, administrators, safety officials, freedom of information officials, risk-management officers, maintenance engineers, budget personnel, and legislators. The report is organized as follows: Preface; Disclosure Under FOIA; State Disclosure Statutes; Statutory Privilege for Highway Safety Improvement Documents and Data; Conclusion; Appendix A--Survey Questionnaire; Appendix B--The History of Section 924 as Set Forth in the "Code of Federal Regulations"; and Endnotes.

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  • Supplemental Notes:
    • Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
  • Corporate Authors:

    Transportation Research Board

    500 Fifth Street, NW
    Washington, DC  United States  20001
  • Publication Date: 1995-4

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Features: Appendices;
  • Pagination: 29 p.
  • Serial:

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 00716802
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Files: TRIS, TRB
  • Created Date: Feb 6 1996 12:00AM