The House of Delegates is poised to approve a bill today that would keep private all records of college campus threat assessment teams, over the objections of open government advocates.
The measure - sponsored by Del. Rob Bell, R-Albemarle County, and supported by the University of Virginia - would allow threat assessment teams at public universities to discuss more easily a potentially dangerous student's criminal and mental health records.
The bill would also exempt from Virginia's Freedom of Information Act any records generated by campus threat assessment teams, such as the teams' notes, minutes and agendas.
The Virginia Coalition for Open Government and the Virginia Press Association have argued that threat assessment team records ought to be available publicly in cases of extreme violence, such as the Virginia Tech shootings in April 2007.
Bell and UVa officials, however, say that the threat assessment teams - which were formed after the Virginia Tech murders - must be allowed to discuss possible threats without worrying that the their discussions will be made public. Moreover, they say, a student worried about a possible threat to campus safety might be less likely to notify the campus' threat assessment team if there is a chance the tip might be made public.
The House of Delegates voted to engross Bell's bill, HB 903, in a 98-0 vote Wednesday. It will be up for its third and final reading in the House today.
An identical measure carried by Sen. John S. Edwards, D-Roanoke, is scheduled to come up before a subcommittee of the Senate General Laws and Technology Committee on Feb. 8.
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