ATLANTA (AP) - Big changes have been approved to the way Georgia colleges and universities respond to open records requests.
College athletic departments in Georgia will now have 90 days - instead of three - to respond to almost all open-records requests under a bill that was signed into law by Governor Nathan Deal on Monday.
Sponsoring Rep. Earl Ehrhart, a Powder Springs Republican, pushed the bill to put Georgia schools on an even playing field with competitors during recruiting seasons. He also said the bill will help student athletes maintain privacy during the recruiting process.
Opponents of the new law have called the move unprecedented, saying that no other state defines exemptions for college athletic departments' records.
