[Adopted 8-4-2005 by Res. No. 10-2005]
The following procedures shall be followed in
all cases where the Town or any of its departments, officers or employees
shall receive a request for access to records under FOIL.
A.
All FOIL requests shall be in writing, on forms provided
by the Town. No oral requests shall be accepted.
B.
All FOIL requests shall be presented initially to
the Town's designated Records Access Officer, the Town Clerk or his/her
deputy.
C.
Upon receipt of a FOIL request, the Records Access
Officer shall immediately distribute the request to all Town department
heads, and the Supervisor's office, with a request that they review
their files and determine if any records responsive or potentially
responsive to the request are in their possession. Responses shall
be provided to the Records Access Officer by each department head
and the Supervisor's office, in writing. Responding parties shall
also provide any questions or concerns about the FOIL request or particular
records (i.e., whether they are to be disclosed or may be privileged),
in writing.
D.
Once all department heads and the Supervisor have
responded, the Records Access Officer shall advise the Town Attorney
of the FOIL request, discuss any questions or concerns raised by the
department heads or the Supervisor, discuss whether the request relates
to matters which are or may be involved in litigation, and whether
there is any question regarding the records or documents being requested.
E.
The Town Attorney shall advise the Records Access
Officer, generally, of those categories of records which are exempt
from disclosure under FOIL, under the provisions of POL §§ 87
and 89 (as now enacted or subsequently amended). The most common type
of records which would be privileged are any communications between
attorneys of the Town (Town Attorney, Planning Board or Code Enforcement
Attorney or insurance defense counsel), in any form (written, oral
or electronic), and Town officials or employees containing or pertaining
to confidential legal advice, whether or not related to pending or
threatened litigation. This ensures that all Town officials and employees
will feel free to contact their Town attorneys to seek advice and
guidance, without concern that these discussions or inquiries may
later become public.
F.
If the Records Access Officer is able to identify
records or groups of records which are or appear to be exempt from
disclosure, he or she shall segregate these, and prepare a list of
the documents by date and general description (i.e., "letter of __________,
200__ from Town Attorney to Town Assessor re: tax certiorari petition;"
memo of __________, 200__ to file from Town Supervisor regarding collective
bargaining with Town employees.").
G.
The Town Attorney shall review such list and make
the final decision on whether to release documents that are or may
be privileged or exempt from disclosure. If necessary, the Town Attorney
shall review the documents in question before making such final decision.
The Town Attorney shall report such final decision to the Town Board
and the Records Access Officer.
