Source: https://ecode360.com/8775218
Timestamp: 2018-07-18 16:39:45
Document Index: 156290761

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 129', '§ 86', '§ 87', '§ 129']

City of Oneida, NY Records
Ch 129 Art I Public Access to Records
§ 129-1 Purpose and scope.
§ 129-2 Designation of records access officers.
§ 129-3 Location.
§ 129-4 Hours for public inspection.
§ 129-5 Requests for records.
§ 129-6 Subject matter list.
§ 129-7 Denial of access to records; appeals.
Ch 129 Art II Retention and Disposition
§ 129-9 Adoption of Schedule MU-1.
§ 129-10 Minimum retention period; criteria for disposal.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Oneida at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions). Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
The people's right to know the process of government decision-making and the documents and statistics leading to determinations can be thwarted by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.
This article provides information concerning the procedures by which records may be obtained from an agency defined by Subdivision 3 of § 86 of the Public Officers Law. No agency regulations shall be more restrictive than this article.
Agency personnel shall furnish to the public the information and records required by the Freedom of Information Law,[1] as well as records otherwise available by law.
The Common Council of the city shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with the regulations herein and designates the City Clerk as the principal records access officer who shall have the duty of coordinating the city response to public requests for access to records. The designation of the City Clerk shall not be construed to prohibit the Attorney for the city ("Attorney"), who has in the past been authorized to make records or information available to the public, from continuing to do so.
The City Clerk is responsible for assuring that city personnel:
The city is not the custodian for such records; or
The records of which the city is a custodian cannot be found after diligent search.
The Common Council hereby designates the office of the City Clerk and the Attorney as the location where public records shall be available for public inspection and copying.
The City Clerk and Attorney shall accept requests for public access to records and produce records during all hours during which the Clerk's office or Attorney's office is regularly open for business.
The City Clerk and Attorney may require that a request be made in writing or may make records available upon oral request.
The City Clerk and Attorney shall respond to any request reasonably describing the record or records sought within five business days of receipt of the request.
If the City Clerk and Attorney do not provide or deny access to the records sought within five business days of receipt of a request, the City Clerk and Attorney shall furnish a written acknowledgment of receipt of the request and a statement of the approximate date when the request will be granted or denied. If access to records is neither granted nor denied within 10 business days after the date of acknowledgment of receipt of a request, the request may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.
The City Clerk and Attorney shall maintain a reasonably detailed current list by subject matter of all records in his/her or their possession, whether or not records are available pursuant to Subdivision 2 of § 87 of the Public Officers Law.
The Common Council shall hear appeals or shall designate a person or body to hear appeals regarding denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information Law.
If the Common Council fails to respond to a request within five business days of receipt of a request as required in § 129-5 of this article, such failure shall be deemed a denial of access by the agency.
The time for deciding an appeal by the Common Council or the person or body designated to hear appeals shall commence upon receipt of written appeal identifying:
The Common Council shall transmit to the Committee on Open Government copies of all appeals upon receipt of an appeal. Such copies shall be addressed to:
The Common Council or the person or body designated to hear appeals shall inform the appellant and the Committee on Open Government of its determination, in writing, within seven business days of receipt of an appeal. The determination shall be transmitted to the Committee on Open Government in the same manner as set forth in Subsection F of this section.
The City Clerk or Attorney may provide copies of records without charging a fee.
The City Clerk or Attorney may charge a fee for copies of records, provided that:
The fee for copies of records not covered by Subsection C(1) shall not exceed the actual reproduction cost, which is the average unit cost for copying a record, excluding fixed costs of the city such as operator salaries.