[HISTORY: Adopted by the President and Village Board of the
Village of Brownstown 1-19-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-01-03. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The Illinois Freedom of Information act provides that "all persons
are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs
of government and official acts and policies of those who represent
them as public officials and public employees consistent with the
terms of this Act. Such access is necessary to enable the people to
fulfill their duties of discussing public issues fully and freely,
making informed political judgments and monitoring government to ensure
that it is being conducted in the public interest." This statutory
provision applies to all information collected, assembled, or maintained
by a public body in the course of its official business that is to
be made available during normal business hours for inspection or copying.
It assures that a written request for information will receive a timely
response and allows the organization to recoup any production costs
incurred by supplying a response. The Village is committed to providing
citizens and taxpayers access to applicable public records under the
Act. The intent of this policy is to clarify the requirements and
to assist staff in the compliance of both the letter and the spirit
of the Act. The Act is not to violate individual privacy, nor to further
commercial enterprise, nor to disrupt the work of any public body.
The spirit of the Act is to minimize the restraints of information
access by limiting exceptions to the general rule that the people
have a right to know the decisions, policies, procedures, rules, standards
and other aspects of government activity that affect the conduct of
government and the lives of any or all of the people.
The Village is a municipal entity dedicated to providing its
residents and taxpayers with services for their safety, health and
environment.
(A)
Request form must be completed (FOIA Request Form). There is
no requirement under this chapter to respond to oral requests or to
provide information other than what already exists in the records.
(B)
Request should be directed to: Robin Lovett, Village Clerk,
FOIA Officer for the Village, at the Village Clerk's Office, 114 East
Main Street, Brownstown, Illinois 62418.
[Amended 9-23-2013 by Ord. No. 13-09-01]
(C)
The request must specify the records requested to be disclosed
for inspection or to be copied. If you desire that any records be
certified, you must specify which ones. Legal counsel may be solicited
to advise as to the proper response to the request.
(D)
The Village FOIA Officer shall note the date upon which the
Village received the written request, compute the day on which the
period for response will expire and note that date on the written
request. The Village FOIA Officer shall maintain an electric or paper
copy of a written request along with any and all documents submitted
with the request until the records have been disclosed or the request
has been denied. The Village FOIA Officer shall create a file for
the retention of the original request, a copy of the response, a record
of written communications with the requester; and a copy of other
communications.
(E)
Within five business days of the receipt of a written request
to the FOIA Officer, unless otherwise provided by the Act, the Village
will respond with written information regarding access to the information,
request an extension under the Act, or deny the request in writing.
(F)
The Village may extend the five business day period for an additional
five business days if it can demonstrate that certain conditions exists
pursuant to the Act. If the Village seeks an extension under the Act,
it must within the original five business days, notify the requester
in writing of the reasons for the extension and of the new due date.
(G)
Denial of the request will occur if the public records request
fall within one of the specific exemptions of the Act, or in those
situations where the public body does not have either a right of access
or ownership of the information. If only part of the request is denied,
and access will be given to the remainder, it will be stated in the
response. Any denial will include the reason, including a detailed
factual basis for any exemption claimed; citation to supporting legal
authority for any exemption claimed; a notice of the right to a review
of the denial by the Public Access Counselor, including the contact
information of the Public Access Counselor, and notice that the requester
has a right to judicial review under the Act.
(H)
Reimbursement for actual costs for reproducing and certifying
(if requested) the records will be charges as follows: first 50 pages
for black and white, letter or legal size copies are free each page
thereafter shall be charged at $0.15 per page for copied records and
$1 for certification of record. For color or abnormally sized copies
and electronic copies (tape, CD, disk, etc.) the Village shall charge
the actual costs for copying.
(I)
If a request is for a commercial purpose; then the Village has
21 business days to provide an initial response in writing. The response
may consist of providing the records; provide the requester with an
estimate as to when the records will be available and estimated costs;
denying the record under an exemption or notifying the requester that
the request is unduly burdensome. Requests made by news media, not-for-profit
organizations shall not be considered commercial if they are made
for the purposes of journalism, research or similar purpose.
