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City of Port Jervis, NY
Orange County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (14) Index
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Port Jervis as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 1-13-1975]
Records Retention and Disposition Schedule No. 11-City-1, containing records retention periods for City records, established pursuant to Part 185, Title 8 of the Official Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York, is hereby adopted for use by the City Clerk-Treasurer of this City.
This Council authorizes the disposition of records in accordance with retention periods set forth in the adopted Records Retention and Disposition Schedule
[Adopted 2-27-1978 (Ch. 40 of the 1981 Code)]
Pursuant to the requirements set forth in § 87(1)(a) of the Public Officers Law of the State of New York, the Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, has promulgated the following regulations governing public access to records.
The Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, designates the City Clerk-Treasurer of the City of Port Jervis, New York, as records access officer for the City. As records access officer, the City Clerk-Treasurer shall have the duty of coordinating the City's response to public requests for access to records.
It is required that any request for public access to records be made to the City Clerk-Treasurer in writing by the requester.
Requests for access to public records shall be received and records made available at the office of the City Clerk-Treasurer, which is located in the Municipal Building at the corner of Sussex and Hammond Streets in the City of Port Jervis, Orange County, New York.
The City Clerk-Treasurer will accept requests for public access to records and produce records during all hours that said office is regularly open for business.
All written requests for access to public records 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.
The City, through its designated agent, shall respond to any request reasonably describing the record or records sought within five business days of receipt of the request.
If the City does not provide or deny access to the records sought within five business days of the receipt of a request, the City 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 the receipt of a request, the request may be construed as a denial of access that may be appealed.
Except in cases where a different fee is otherwise prescribed by law, such as a request for a birth certificate or a death certificate, the City shall charge a fee for copies of records according to the following schedule:
A. 
The fee for copying records shall be as provided in Chapter 280, Fees.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
B. 
In instances where copies cannot be made by photocopying equipment, a transcript of the requested records shall be made upon request. Such transcript may be either typed or handwritten. In such cases, the person requesting records shall be charged for the clerical time involved in making the transcript.
C. 
The fee for copies of records not covered by Subsections A and B above shall be equal to the actual reproduction cost, which is the average unit cost for copying a record, excluding fixed costs of the agency such as operators' salaries.
D. 
The actual fees involved in requests pursuant to Subsections B and C above shall be determined by the City Clerk-Treasurer and may fluctuate from year to year based upon the actual cost of clerical time and the unit cost for copying.
No fee shall be charged for the following:
A. 
Inspection of records.
B. 
Search for records. Any certification by the records access officer that the record is a true copy of the original.
The City Clerk-Treasurer, as the designated records access officer, shall be responsible for assuring that City personnel:
A. 
Maintain an up-to-date subject matter list.
B. 
Assist the requester in identifying requested records, if necessary.
C. 
Upon locating the records, take one of the following actions:
(1) 
Make records available for inspection; or
(2) 
Deny access to records in whole or in part and explain in writing the reasons therefor.
D. 
Upon request for copies of records:
(1) 
Make a copy available upon payment of established fees.
(2) 
Permit the requester to copy these records without removing the same from the office of the records access officer.
E. 
Upon request, certify that a record is a true copy.
F. 
Upon failure to locate records, certify that:
(1) 
The agency is not the custodian of such records; or
(2) 
The records of which the agency is a custodian cannot be found after diligent search.
The City Clerk-Treasurer shall maintain a reasonably detailed current list by subject matter of all records in his or her possession, whether or not the records are available to the public.
The aforementioned subject matter list shall be sufficiently detailed to permit identification of the category of the records sought.
The aforementioned subject matter list shall be updated not less than twice per year, and the most recent update shall appear on the first page of the subject matter list.
The Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, shall hear appeals or shall designate, in its discretion, an individual or entity to hear appeals regarding denial of access to records under the Freedom of Information Law.
A denial of access shall be in writing, stating the reason therefor and advising the person denied access of his or her right to appeal to the Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, or to the individual or entity established by said Council to hear appeals. The written denial shall set forth the individual or entity designated to hear appeals and shall identify said appellate agency by name, title, business address and business telephone number. The records access officer shall not be the appeals officer.
Any person denied access to records may appeal within 30 days of a denial.
The time for deciding an appeal by the Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, or the individual or entity designated by said Council to hear appeals, shall commence upon receipt of written appeal identifying:
A. 
The date and location of a request for records.
B. 
The records that were denied.
C. 
The name and return address of the appellant.
The City Clerk-Treasurer shall transmit to the Committee on Open Government copies of all appeals upon receipt of an appeal. Such copies shall be addressed to: Committee on Open Government, Department of State, 162 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York, 12231.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
The Common Council of the City of Port Jervis, New York, or the individual or entity designated by said Council 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 the above section.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
A final denial of access to a requested record, as provided in these rules and regulations, shall be subject to court review as provided for in Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules.