[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Chester 10-15-1974. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of these rules is to set forth the methods and procedures governing the availability, location and nature of those records of the Village of Chester which are subject to the provisions of Article 6 of the Public Officers Law, known as the "Freedom of Information Law."
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AGENCY
Any department, office, board, bureau, commission, council, division, unit or entity of the Village of Chester government having custody of public records, including the Board of Trustees of the Village.
RECORD or RECORDS
Any file, memorandum, document or other writing constituting:
A. 
Final opinions and orders made in the adjudication of cases.
B. 
Statements of policy and interpretations which have been adopted by the agency and any statistical or factual tabulations which led to the formulation thereof.
C. 
Minutes of meetings of the Board of Trustees and of any agency, and minutes of public hearings held by the Board of Trustees or any agency.
D. 
Internal or external audits and statistical or factual tabulations made by or for the agency.
E. 
Administrative staff manuals and instructions to staff that affect members of the public.
F. 
Police blotters and booking records.
G. 
The payroll information.
H. 
Final determinations and dissenting opinions of members of the Board of Trustees.
I. 
Any other files, records, papers or documents required by any provision of law to be made available for public inspection.
RECORDS ACCESS OFFICER
The person to be designated by each agency as the person having supervision of the inspection and copying of the agency's records.
STATISTICAL TABULATION
A collection or orderly presentation of numerical data arranged logically in columns and rows or graphically, and the term "factual tabulation" means a collection of statements of objective information logically arranged and reflecting objective reality, actual existence or an actual occurrence. Opinions, policy options and recommendations do not constitute statistical or factual tabulations.
The Board of Trustees shall designate one or more officers or employees of the Village of Chester who shall, in addition to their regular duties, act as records access officers for the agencies of the Village and have supervision of the inspection and copying of agencies' records.
A. 
Requests to inspect or to obtain a copy of records in the custody of any agency shall be submitted in writing either in person or by mail to the records access officer on a form to be prescribed and furnished by such officer. Records shall be available for inspection within the agency on all regular workdays from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and from 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. A workday shall be any day except Saturday, Sunday, a legal holiday or a day on which the Village of Chester government is otherwise closed for business.
B. 
If the records sought to be inspected or reproduced are being inspected by another person, in the process of preparation or being used in official business, or if the requested inspection would unreasonably interfere with or disrupt office duties or business operations, the records access officer shall so inform the person and shall specify a reasonable time when such records may be inspected or reproduced.
C. 
Inspection and copying of records shall be conducted within the agency under the supervision of the records access officer or his designee. There shall be a one-hour limit per day upon the inspection of one or more records by any one person; provided, however, that the records access officer may, in his discretion, for good cause, extend such time limitation. The person may make copies of records either handwritten or copies through the use of his own copying or reproduction equipment.
D. 
Payroll information, as provided in § 88 of the Public Officers Law, shall be made available for inspection and copying in accordance with the provisions of such statute and the regulations of the State Comptroller.
E. 
A charge of $0.20 per page not exceeding nine inches by 15 inches in size shall be made for each copy furnished by the agency, unless another charge or fee is prescribed by law. There shall be no charge or fee for certifying a record, unless prescribed by law.
A. 
In accordance with the provisions of Subdivision 3 of § 88 of the Public Officers Law and in conformity with such guidelines as may be promulgated by the Committee on Public Access to Records regarding the prevention of unwarranted invasions of personal privacy, the records access officer may delete from any record identifying details the disclosure of which would result in an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy prior to making such record available for inspection or copying. An unwarranted invasion of personal privacy includes but shall not be limited to:
(1) 
Disclosure of such personal matters as may have been reported in confidence to the agency and as are not relevant or essential to the ordinary work of the agency.
(2) 
Disclosure of employment, medical or credit histories or personal references of applicants for employment, except such records may be disclosed when the applicant has provided a written release permitting such disclosure.
(3) 
Disclosure of items involving the medical or personal records of a client or patient in a hospital or medical facility.
(4) 
The sale or release of lists of names and addresses in the possession of any agency if such lists would be used for private, commercial or fund-raising purposes.
(5) 
Disclosure of items of a personal nature when disclosure would result in economic or personal hardship to the subject party and such records are not relevant or essential to the ordinary work of the agency.
B. 
In the event that one or more deletions are so made from any document, the records access officer shall provide written notice of that fact to the person requesting the same. If the record is such that the personal matters cannot be fully deleted without substantively affecting the record or if the identifying details cannot be effectively deleted, the records access officer shall deny access to such record as provided herein.
If the records access officer determines that a request to inspect or copy records pertains to information required to be disclosed under Subdivision 1 of § 88 of the Public Officers Law and not exempt from disclosure as an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy or otherwise, he shall grant the request. The records access officer may, in his discretion, for good cause, grant a request to inspect or copy records or other information which is not required to be made available pursuant to § 88 of the Public Officers Law and not exempt from disclosure as an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy or otherwise. If the records access officer determines that a request to inspect or copy records pertains to information specifically exempted from disclosure by Subdivision 7 of § 88 of the Public Officers Law or pursuant to Subdivision 3 of § 88 of such law, he shall deny such request. In denying any request to inspect or copy records, the records access officer shall indicate his reason for such denial and shall advise the person requesting the same of his right to appeal such denial to the head of the agency.
Any person whose request to inspect, copy or have a copy made of records has been denied pursuant to § 21-6 hereof may appeal such denial to the head of the agency within 10 days from the date of the denial. Such appeal must be in writing and must set forth the name and address of the appellant, the specific records requested, the date of the denial and the reasons given for such denial. The head of the agency, upon review of the appeal, may affirm, modify or reverse the denial within 10 days of the receipt of the appeal. If the head of the agency affirms or modifies the denial, he shall communicate his reasons for such affirmation or modification to the person making the appeal and inform such person of his right to appeal such affirmation or modification pursuant to Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules.
The records access officer shall maintain and make available for inspection and copying at his office a current list, reasonably detailed by subject matter, of the types of records produced, filed or first kept in the agency on and after the first day of September 1974. Such list shall be in conformity with such regulations as may be promulgated by the Committee on Public Access to Records.