Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 27 - STATE PERSONNEL BOARD › Part 210 - PERS, Regulations for Retirement Plans Administered by the Board of Trustees › Chapter 38 - Access to Public Records under Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983 › Section 27-210-38-101 - General Provisions

Current through June 25, 2024
The following procedures are adopted as provided under the
				  Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983, Chapter 424, Laws of 1983 (hereinafter
				  referred to as the Public Records Act), and take effect thirty (30) days after
				  adoption by the PERS Board of Trustees.
1. DEFINITIONS
The following terms have been defined for purposes of this
				  policy:
a.
Public
				body
: A public body is defined as "any department, bureau,
				division, council, commission, committee, subcommittee, board, agency, and any
				other entity of the state or a political subdivision thereof, and any municipal
				corporation and any other entity created by the Constitution or by law,
				executive order, ordinance or resolution." Within the meaning of this
				regulation, the term 'entity' shall not be construed to include individuals
				employed by a public body or any appointed or elected public
				official.
b.
Public
				records
: Public records are defined as "all books, records,
				papers, accounts, letters, maps, photographs, films cards, tapes, recordings or
				reproductions thereof, and any other documentary materials, regardless of
				physical form or characteristics, having been used, being in use, or prepared,
				possessed or retained for use in the conduct, transaction or performance of any
				business, transaction, work, duty or function of any public body, or required
				to be maintained by any public body."
c.
Exempt Records
:
				Those records exempt from disclosure under the Public Records Act or other
				provision of the law.
d.
Non-exempt records
: Those records which are not exempt
				from disclosure under the Public Records Act or other provision of the
				law.
e.
Working
				day
: A working day is any day other than a weekend, State holiday,
				or a day which by executive order an agency is authorized to be
				closed.
f.
Fees
: By statute, charges are made on a cost-recovery
				basis. Any person who desires copies of a public record as defined herein may
				be charged the actual cost per page of each mechanically reproduced copy.
				Copies of pages printed on both sides (front and back) shall be considered as
				two pages.
(i) If the searching, reviewing, or
				duplicating of documents or the separating of non-exempt material from
				documents, etc., containing exempt material requires more than one-quarter hour
				of work, the requesting party may be charged for the work time above
				one-quarter hour in addition to a mechanical reproduction charge of twenty-five
				cents ($.25) per page for any copies desired. The charge, if any, for the hours
				shall be based upon the hourly salary of the lowest paid employee qualified and
				available to do the job.
(ii) In
				the event the public record is available in computer files and can be obtained
				through computer use, the requesting party may be charged the cost for the
				computer use, including programming time and actual computer time as well as
				any other costs incurred. This charge, if any, will be determined by
				PERS.
(iii) Requests for any
				information from records which are stored off site will be subject to
				additional actual costs as incurred in retrieving such information from, and
				returning information to, storage.
(iv) Mailing costs calculated at the
				applicable United States Postal Service rates shall be charged where
				appropriate. The cost of mailing a notice to third parties via certified mail,
				return receipt requested, shall be charged to persons requesting the public
				records. Actual costs for shipment by other than United States Postal Service
				shall be charged to the person requesting the special shipment. (v) Fees
				established by this rule may be waived or reduced upon a determination that
				such waiver or reduction is in the public interest because furnishing the
				information is considered as primarily benefiting the general public. Persons
				seeking such waiver or reduction may be requested to submit a written statement
				setting forth the intended purpose for which the records are requested or
				otherwise indicate how disclosure would primarily benefit the public.
				Determinations regarding waiver or reduction of fees under this provision are
				solely within the discretion of the PERS.