§ 22-13-9. Access to executive sessions of a public agency — Access to records — Disclosure by
the auditor general.
(a) Whenever a public agency goes into executive session, the auditor general or his or
her designated representative shall be permitted to attend the executive session or
if the auditor general or his or her designee is not in attendance at the executive
session, the auditor general or his or her designee, upon written request, shall be
furnished with copies of all data or materials furnished to the members of the public
agency at the executive session. If the auditor general or his or her designee attends
the executive session, the auditor general shall be furnished the same data in the
same form and at the same time as members of the public agency.
(b) Within three (3) working days of a written request by the auditor general, the public
agency shall furnish a copy, whether approved by the agency or not, of the minutes
of any meeting, including any executive session of the public agency.
(c) The auditor general shall have full and unlimited access to any and all records of
any public agency, in whatever form or mode the records may be, unless the auditor
general's access to the records is specifically prohibited or limited by federal or
state law. In no case shall any confidentiality provisions of state law be construed
to restrict the auditor general's access to the records; provided, the auditor general's
access to any confidential data shall not in any way change the confidential nature
of the data obtained. Where an audit or investigative finding emanates from confidential
data, specific confidential information will not be made public. The records shall
include those in the immediate possession of a public agency as well as records which
the agency itself has a right to. In the event of a dispute between the agency involved
and the auditor general as to whether or not the data involved are confidential by
law, the matter will be referred to the attorney general for resolution.
(d)(1) If in the course of an executive session any fact comes to the attention of the auditor
general or his or her designated representative, which in his or her judgment constitutes
an impropriety, irregularity, or illegal transaction, or points to the onset of an
impropriety or illegal transaction, then the auditor general shall disclose that information
to the joint committee on legislative services, the director of administration, and
the chairperson of the public agency involved. Where the facts or the data upon which
the facts are based are deemed confidential pursuant to the provisions of federal
or state law, the auditor general's access to the information shall not in any way
change the confidential nature of the data obtained.
(2) In the event of a dispute between the agency involved and the auditor general as to
whether or not the data involved are confidential by law, the matter will be referred
to the attorney general for resolution.
(e) The auditor general or his or her designated representative shall be immune from any
liability to any party for claims arising out of disclosure authorized by this section.
(f) For the purposes of this section, the phrase "public agency� shall include the following:
the Rhode Island industrial building authority, the Rhode Island recreational building
authority, the Rhode Island commerce corporation, the Rhode Island industrial facilities
corporation, the Rhode Island refunding bond authority, the Rhode Island housing and
mortgage finance corporation, the Rhode Island resource recovery corporation, the
Rhode Island public transit authority, the Rhode Island student loan authority, the
water resources board, the Rhode Island health and educational building corporation,
the Rhode Island turnpike and bridge authority, the Narragansett Bay commission, the
convention center authority, their successors and assigns, and any other body corporate
and politic which has been or which is subsequently created or established within
this state.