[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Putnam Valley
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 8-19-1992 by L.L. No. 2-1992]
A.
There is hereby established for the Town of Putnam Valley
a records management program which shall be the continuing administrative
function of the Town of Putnam Valley.
B.
It is the responsibility of all government employees
to contribute to the accomplishment of the program objectives and to cooperate
with the records management officer (RMO).
The objectives of the records management program shall be as follows:
A.
Facilitate the creation of usable records containing
accurate and complete information.
B.
Save tax dollars through efficient administration of
information resources.
C.
Prevent the creation of unnecessary records.
D.
Make recorded information available and readily accessible
when needed, thereby minimizing time spent searching for files and documents.
E.
Ensure the systematic legal disposition of obsolete records.
F.
Encourage the lasting survival of records identified
as having sufficient legal, administrative, fiscal or historical value to
warrant their permanent retention as archival records.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Those official records which have been determined by the officer
and Advisory Committee to have sufficient historical or other value to warrant
their continued preservation by the local government.
Any documents, books, papers, photographs, sound recordings, microforms
or any other materials, regardless of physical form or characteristics, made
or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction
of official town business.
An establishment maintained by the Town of Putnam Valley or cooperatively
by the County of Putnam and participating towns primarily for the storage,
servicing, security and processing of records which must be preserved for
varying periods of time and need not be retained in office equipment or space.
The planning, controlling, directing, organizing, training, promotion
and other managerial use and records disposition, including records preservation,
records disposal and records centers or other storage facilities.
Making information in records available to any town agency for official
use or to the public.
There shall be a records management program established under the aegis
of the Town Board and headed by a records management officer (RMO). The officer
will be responsible for administering the noncurrent and archival public records
and storage areas for the County of Putnam in accordance with local, state
and federal laws and guidelines.
The officer shall have all the necessary powers to carry out the efficient
administration, determination of value, use, preservation, storage and disposition
of the noncurrent and archival public records kept, filed or received by the
offices and departments of the Town of Putnam Valley.
A.
The records management officer shall continually survey
and examine public records to recommend their classification so as to determine
the most suitable methods to be used for the maintaining, storing and servicing
of archival material:
(1)
Obsolete and unnecessary records according to New York
State Records Retention and Disposition Schedules thereby subject to disposition;
(2)
Information containing administrative, legal, fiscal,
research, historical or educational value which warrant their permanent retention;
or
(3)
Records not subject to disposition according to state
law.
B.
Establish guidelines for proper records management in
any department or agency of the Town of Putnam Valley in accordance with local,
state and federal laws and guidelines.
C.
Report annually to the Putnam Valley Town Board on the
powers and duties herein mentioned, including but not limited to the cost/benefit
ratio of programs effectuated by the department.
D.
The officer shall operate a records management center
for the storage, processing and servicing of all noncurrent and archival records
for all departments and agencies of the Town of Putnam Valley or shall cooperate
in the establishment and operation of a cooperative records management center
for the county and participating Putnam County towns.
E.
The officer shall establish a Putnam Valley archive and
perform the following functions:
(1)
Advise and assist Town of Putnam Valley departments in
reviewing and selecting material to be transferred to the Putnam Valley archive
for preservation.
(2)
Continually survey and examine public records to determine
the most suitable methods to be used for the creating, maintaining, storing
and servicing of archival materials.
(3)
Establish and maintain an adequate repository for the
proper storage, conservation, processing and servicing of archival records.
(4)
Promulgate rules governing public access to and use of
records in the archives, subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.
(5)
Develop a confidentiality policy for archival records
designated confidential, provided that such policy does not conflict with
any federal or state statutes.
(6)
Provide information services to other offices of the
Town of Putnam Valley.
(7)
Collect archival materials which are not official records
of the Town of Putnam Valley but which have associational value to the County
of Putnam or a close relationship to the existing archival collection. Such
collecting shall be subject to archive space, staff and cost limitations and
to the potential endangerment of such materials if they are not collected
by the archives.
(8)
Develop a procedure whereby historically important records
are to be identified at the point of generation.
(9)
Serve as a member of the Putnam County Records Management
Advisory Board in the establishment and operation of a cooperative records
storage facility for inactive records of the county and participating towns
and villages.
There shall be a Records Advisory Board designated to work closely with
and provide advice to the records management officer. The Board shall consist
of the Supervisor and a member of the Town Board, the Town Attorney, the Town
Historian, the Town Finance Director or Comptroller and two members of the
general public who have a demonstrated knowledge of records management, historical
records or Putnam Valley history. The Board shall meet periodically and have
the following duties:
A.
Provide advice to the records management officer on the
development of the records management program.
B.
Review the performance of the program on an ongoing basis
and propose changes and improvements.
C.
Review retention periods proposed by the records management
officer for records not covered by state archives' schedules.
D.
Provide advice on the appraisal of records for archival
value and to be the final sign-off entity as to what is or is not archival.
A.
A department of the Town of Putnam Valley is the legal
custodian of its records and shall retain custody of records deposited in
the records center. Records transferred to or acquired by the archives shall
be under the custody and control of the archives rather than the department
which created or held them immediately prior the being transferred to the
archives.
B.
Records shall be transferred to the archives upon the
recommendation of the RMO, with the approval of the head of the department
which has custody of the records and the approval of the Records Advisory
Board.
C.
Records may be permanently removed from the archives
at the request of the RMO or the head of the department which had custody
of the records immediately prior to the transfer of these records to the archives,
subject to the approval of the Records Advisory Board.
The Town Attorney may take steps to recover local government records
which have been alienated from proper custody and may, when necessary, institute
actions of replevin.
No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of by a department
of the Town of Putnam Valley unless approval has been obtained from the records
management officer. No records shall be destroyed or otherwise disposed of
by the records management officer without the express written consent of the
department head having authority.
[Adopted at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions,
Art. I)]
A.
The people's right to know the process of governmental
decisionmaking and to review the documents and statistics leading to determinations
is basic to our society. Access to such information should not be thwarted
by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.
B.
These regulations provide information concerning the
procedures by which records may be obtained.
A.
The following records, pursuant to town and state law,
are not accessible to the public:
(1)
Those which are specifically exempted from disclosure
by state or federal statute.
(2)
Those which, if disclosed, would constitute an unwarranted
invasion of personal privacy under the provisions of Subdivision 2 of § 89
of the Public Officers Law.
(3)
Those which, if disclosed, would impair present or imminent
contract awards or collective bargaining negotiations.
(4)
Those which are trade secrets or are maintained for the
regulation of commercial enterprise which, if disclosed, would cause substantial
injury to the competitive position of the subject enterprise.
(5)
Those which are compiled for law enforcement purposes
and which, if disclosed, would:
(a)
Interfere with law enforcement investigations or judicial
proceedings;
(b)
Deprive a person of a right to a fair trial or impartial
adjudication;
(c)
Identify a confidential source or disclose confidential
information relating to a criminal investigation; or
(d)
Reveal criminal investigative techniques or procedures,
except routine techniques and procedures.
(6)
Those which, if disclosed, would endanger the life or
safety of any person.
(7)
Those which are interagency or intraagency materials
which are not:
(8)
Those which are examination questions or answers which
are requested prior to the final administration of such questions.
(9)
Those which are computer access codes.
B.
Any conflicts among laws governing public access to records
shall be construed in favor of the widest possible availability of public
records.
A.
The Town Board of the Town of Putnam Valley is responsible
for ensuring compliance with the regulations herein and designates the following
persons as records access officers:
B.
Records access officers are responsible for ensuring
appropriate agency response to public requests for access to records. The
designation of records access officers shall not be construed to prohibit
officials who have in the past been authorized to make records or information
available to the public from continuing to do so. Records access officers
shall ensure that personnel:
(1)
Maintain an up-to-date subject matter list.
(2)
Assist the requester in identifying requested records,
if necessary.
(4)
Upon request for copies of records, make a copy available upon payment or offer to pay established fees, if any, in accordance with § 36-18.
(5)
Upon request, certify that a record is a true copy.
Records shall be available for public inspection and copying at the
office of the Town Clerk, 265 Oscawana Lake Road, Putnam Valley, New York
10579.
Requests for public access to records shall be accepted and records
produced during all hours the Town Clerk's office is regularly open for
business. These hours are 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.
A.
A written request is required.
B.
A response shall be given regarding any request reasonably
describing the record or records sought within five business days of receipt
of the request.
C.
A request shall reasonably describe the record or records
sought. Whenever possible, a person requesting records should supply information
regarding dates, file designations or other information that may help to describe
the records sought.
D.
If the records access officer does not provide or deny
access to the record sought within five business days of receipt of a request,
he or she 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, such failure
may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.
A.
The records access officer shall maintain a reasonably
detailed current list by subject matter of all records in its possession,
whether or not records are available pursuant to Subdivision 2 of § 87
of the Public Officers Law.
B.
The subject matter list shall be sufficiently detailed
to permit identification of the category of the record sought.
C.
The subject matter list shall be updated not less than
twice per year. The most recent update shall appear on the first page of the
subject matter list.
A.
Denial of access to records shall be in writing, stating
the reason therefor and advising the requester of the right to appeal to the
individual or body established to hear appeals.
B.
If requested records are not provided promptly as required in § 36-15D of these regulations, such failure shall also be deemed a denial of access.
C.
The following person or persons or body shall hear appeals
from denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information Law: the
Town Board of the Town of Putnam Valley, 265 Oscawana Lake Road, Putnam Valley,
New York 10579, (914) 526-3280.
D.
The time for deciding an appeal by the individual or
body designated to hear appeals shall commence upon receipt of written appeal
identifying:
(1)
The date of the appeal.
(2)
The date and location of the request for records.
(3)
The records to which the requester was denied access.
(4)
Whether the denial of access was in writing or due to failure to provide records promptly as required by § 36-15D.
(5)
The name and return address of the requester.
E.
The individual or body designated to hear appeals shall
inform the requester of its decision in writing within 10 business days of
receipt of an appeal.
F.
The person or body designated to hear appeals shall transmit
to the Committee on Open Government copies of all appeals upon receipt of
appeals. Such copies shall be addressed to the Committee on Open Government,
Department of State, 162 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York 12231.
G.
The person or body designated to hear appeals shall inform the appellant and the Committee on Open Government of its determination in writing within ten 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.
A notice containing the title or name and business address of the records
access officers and appeals person or body and the location where records
can be seen or copied shall be posted in a conspicuous location wherever records
are kept and/or published in a local newspaper of general circulation.
