[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Rome as Sec. 2.09 of the prior Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A. 
Each officer, employee and deputy shall keep secure and preserve all records received from his or her predecessor or other persons as required by law to be filed, deposited or kept in his or her office and which are in the lawful possession or control of the officer or employee or deputies. Each officer, employee and deputy shall also secure and preserve all records that come into his or her possession as an officer, employee or deputy.
B. 
Upon the expiration of an officer's term of office or an employee's term of employment, or whenever the office or position of employment becomes vacant, each such officer or employee shall deliver to the successor all records then in custody and the successor shall receipt therefore to the officer or employee, who shall file said receipt with the Town Clerk/Treasurer. If a vacancy occurs before a successor is selected or qualified, such records shall be delivered to and receipted for by the Town Clerk/Treasurer, to be delivered to such successor upon taking office. In the event the Town Clerk/Treasurer's position becomes temporarily vacant; the records shall be surrendered to the Town Chairperson.
A. 
Each elected official is the legal custodian of his or her records and the records of his or her office.
B. 
The head of each department shall be the legal custodian of all records of such departments.
C. 
Except for the Town Board, the chairperson of each committee, board, commission or other body shall be the legal custodian of the records of such body. Provided, however, the chairperson may designate a Town staff member as the legal custodian.
D. 
Except for Town board members, a legal custodian shall name a person to act as legal custodian in his or her absence or the absence of the designee.
E. 
The legal custodian shall have full legal power to render decisions and to carry out the duties of an authority under Subch. II of Ch. 19, Wis. Stats., and this chapter. The designation of a legal custodian does not affect the powers and duties of an authority under this section.
A. 
Records will be available for inspection and copying when the custodian is available.
B. 
If regular office hours are not maintained at the location where records are kept, the records will be available for inspection and copying upon at least 48 hours' advance notice of intent to inspect or copy.
C. 
A requester shall be permitted to use facilities comparable to those available to Town employees to inspect copy or abstract a record.
D. 
The legal custodian may require supervision during inspection or may impose other reasonable restrictions on the manner of access to an original record if the record is irreplaceable or easily damaged. No original public records of the Town shall be removed from the possession of the legal custodian.
E. 
A requester shall be charged a fee to defray the cost of locating and copying records as follows:
(1) 
There shall be a fee for photocopying per page, excluding accident reports for the people involved. Said cost will be calculated not to exceed the actual, necessary and direct cost of reproduction.
(2) 
If the form of a written record does not permit copying, the actual and necessary cost of photographing and photographic processing shall be charged.
(3) 
The actual full cost of providing a copy of other records not in printed form on paper, such as films, computer printouts and audio- or videotapes, shall be charged.
(4) 
If mailing or shipping is necessary, the actual cost thereof shall also be charged.
(5) 
There shall be no charge for locating a record unless the actual cost therefore exceeds $50, in which case the actual cost shall be determined by the legal custodian and billed to the requester. The Town will determine the cost of locating a record by using the hourly rate of $25 per hour for employees involved in attempting to locate the record.
(6) 
The legal custodian shall estimate the cost of all applicable fees and may require a cash deposit adequate to assure payment, if such estimate exceeds $5.
(7) 
Elected and appointed officials of the Town shall not be required to pay for public records they may reasonably require for the proper performance of their official duties.
(8) 
The legal custodian may provide copies of a record without charge or at a reduced charge where it is determined that waiver or reduction of the fee is in the public interest.
F. 
Notice. As required in § 19.34(1), Wis. Stats., each authority, as defined in § 19.32(1), Wis. Stats., shall adopt, prominently display and make available for inspection a notice regarding access to public records.
A. 
Town officers may destroy the following nonutility financial records of which they are the legal custodian and which are considered obsolete, after completion of any audit by an auditor licensed under Chapter 442 of the Wisconsin Statutes but not less than seven years after the record was effective unless another period has been set by statute, and then after such a period, or unless a shorter period has been fixed by the State Public Records Board pursuant to § 16.61(3)(e), Wis. Stats.
(1) 
Contracts and papers relating thereto.
(2) 
Correspondence and communication.
(3) 
Financial reports other than annual financial reports.
(4) 
Justice dockets.
(5) 
Oaths of office.
(6) 
Reports of boards, commissions, committees and officials duplicated in the Town Board proceedings.
(7) 
Election notices and proofs of publication.
(8) 
Canceled voter registration cards.
(9) 
Official bonds.
(10) 
Police records other than investigative records.
(11) 
Resolutions and petitions.
(12) 
Bank statements, deposit books, slips and stubs.
(13) 
Bonds and coupons after maturity.
(14) 
Canceled checks, duplicates and check stubs.
(15) 
License and permit applications, stubs and duplicates.
(16) 
Payrolls and other time and employment records of personnel included under the Wisconsin Retirement Fund.
(17) 
Receipt forms.
(18) 
Special assessment records.
(19) 
Vouchers, requisitions, purchase orders and all other supporting document pertaining thereto.
B. 
Town officers may destroy the following utility records of which they are the legal custodians and which are considered obsolete after completion of any audit by an auditor licensed under Chapter 442 of the Wisconsin Statutes, subject to State Public Service Commission regulations, but not less than seven years after the record was effective unless a shorter period has been fixed by the State Public Records Board except that water stubs, receipts of current billings and customers' ledgers may be destroyed not less than two years after payment or receipt of the sum involved or the effective date of said record.
(1) 
Contracts and papers relating thereto.
(2) 
Excavation permits.
(3) 
Inspection records.
C. 
Notwithstanding the above provisions appearing in this section, it is intended hereby that election materials may be destroyed according to time schedules as made and provided in § 7.23, Wis. Stats.
D. 
Unless notice is waived by the State Historical Society, at least 60 days' notice shall be given the State Historical Society prior to the destruction of any record.
E. 
Any tape recordings of a governmental meeting of the Town may be destroyed, erased or reused no sooner than 90 days after the minutes of the meeting have been approved, if the purpose of the recording was to make minutes of the meeting.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words, and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. If not defined herein, the word, term or phrase shall have the definition commonly accepted including a relevant definition contained in the Wisconsin Statutes. When not inconsistent with the context, the words used in the present tense include the future, words in the plural number include the singular number and words in the singular number include the plural number. The word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory:
PERSON
Includes a corporation, firm partnership, association, organization and any other group acting as a unit as well as individuals, including a personal representative, receiver or other representative appointed according to law. Whenever the term "person" is used in any section of this chapter prescribing a penalty or fine, as to partnerships or associations, the work shall include the partners or members thereof, and as to corporations, shall include the officers, agents or members thereof who are responsible for any violation of such section.
TOWN
The Town of Rome, Adams County, Wisconsin, or any duly appointed designate thereof, including, but not limited to, the Town Board and Town committees.
TOWN BOARD or BOARD
The present governing body of the Town or any successors to the legislative power of said body, or any duly appointed designate thereof.
TOWN STAFF
Zoning Administrator, Police Chief, Fire Chief, Highway Commissioner and any other professional engaged by the Town on a temporary, part-time or full-time basis.
UTILITIES
Public and private facilities, such as water wells, water and sewage pumping stations, water storage tanks, electrical power substations, static transformer stations, telephone and telegraph exchanges, microwave radio relays and gas regulation stations, inclusive of associated transmission facilities but not including sewage disposal plants, municipal incinerators, warehouses, shops, storage yards and power plants.