[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Greenburgh 4-23-1975
by L.L. No. 6-1975. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Freedom of Information Act of the
Town of Greenburgh."
A.
The people's right to know the process of government
decision-making and the documents and statistics leading to determinations
is basic to our society. Access to such information should not be thwarted
by shrouding it with the cloak of secrecy or confidentiality.
B.
This chapter provides information concerning the procedures
by which records may be obtained from agencies. The term "agency" shall mean
the Town of Greenburgh and its departments, divisions, offices, bureaus and
boards or commissions created or appointed by the Town Board and any special
or improvement district of the Town, other than a library district, a fire
district, a district corporation or a district having a separately elected
governing body.
[Amended 9-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
D.
Any conflicts among laws governing public access to records
shall be construed in favor of the widest possible availability of public
records.
A.
The Town Board shall be responsible for ensuring compliance
with the regulations herein and shall designate the Town Clerk as records
access officer. The records access officer shall have the duty of coordinating
the Town response to public requests for access to records. However, the public
shall not be denied access to records by Town personnel who have in the past
been authorized to make records or information available.
B.
The records access officer is responsible for assuring
that Town personnel:
A.
The Town Board shall designate the Town Controller as
fiscal officer. He shall respond to requests for an itemized record setting
forth the name, official office address, title and salary of every officer
or employee of the Town.
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
B.
The fiscal officer shall make the payroll items listed
above available to any person, including bona fide members of the news media
as required under Sections 88(1)(g), (1)(i) and (10) of the Freedom of
Information Law.
The Town hereby designates Town Hall as the location where records shall
be available for public inspection and copying.
The Town shall accept requests for public access to records and produce
records during all hours the Town Hall is regularly open for business.
Those Town records to which access may be had and those Town records
to which access may be denied shall be governed by the provisions of Article
6 of the Public Officers Law of the State of New York (Freedom of Information
Law).
A.
Where a request for records is required, such request
must be in writing. Requests may be made by using the preprinted form “Application
for Public Access to Records Per Freedom of Information Law,” a copy
of which may be obtained from the Town Clerk, or which can be viewed on-line
and downloaded from the official Town of Greenburgh Web site, www.greenburghny.com,
under the headings “Documents and Forms” and “Town Clerk.”
Alternatively, requests may be made electronically via e-mail or by letter.
Any e-mail or letter must contain: (1) the words “Freedom of Information
Law Request” or “FOIL Request” either in the subject heading
line or in the text; and (2) the requester's name, address and day telephone
number. E-mail requests must be transmitted to Foiltownclerk@greenburghny.com.
However, a written request shall not be required for records that have been
customarily available without written request.
[Amended 8-29-2007 by L.L. No. 11-2007]
B.
Time limit for response to request.
[Amended 8-29-2007 by L.L. No. 11-2007]
(1)
A response shall be given within five business days of
receipt of a request by:
(a)
Informing a person requesting records that the request or portion
of the request does not reasonably describe the records sought, including
direction, to the extent possible, that would enable that person to request
records reasonably described;
(b)
Granting or denying access to records in whole or in part;
(c)
Acknowledging the receipt of a request in writing, including
an approximate date when the request will be granted or denied in whole or
in part, which shall be reasonable under the circumstances of the request
and shall not be more than 20 business days after the date of the acknowledgment,
or, if it is known that circumstances prevent disclosure, within 20 business
days from the date of such acknowledgment, providing a statement in writing
indicating the reason for inability to grant the request within that time
and a date certain, within a reasonable period under the circumstances of
the request, when the request will be granted in whole or in part; or
(d)
If the receipt of request was acknowledged in writing or e-mail
and included an approximate date when the request would be granted in whole
or in part within 20 business days of such acknowledgment, but circumstances
prevent disclosure within that time, providing a statement in writing within
20 business days of such acknowledgment specifying the reason for the inability
to do so and a date certain, within a reasonable period under the circumstances
of the request, when the request will be granted in whole or in part.
(2)
In determining a reasonable time for granting or denying
a request under the circumstances of a request, personnel shall consider the
volume of a request, the ease or difficulty in locating, retrieving or generating
records, the complexity of the request, the need to review records to determine
the extent to which they must be disclosed, the number of requests received
by the agency, and similar factors that bear on the ability to grant access
to records promptly and within a reasonable time.
(3)
A failure to comply with the time limitations described herein
shall constitute a denial of a request that may be appealed. Such failure
shall include situations in which an officer or employee:
(a)
Fails to grant access to the records sought, denies access in
writing or fails to acknowledge the receipt of a request within five business
days of the receipt of a request;
(b)
Acknowledges the receipt of a request within five business days
but fails to furnish an approximate date when the request will be granted
or denied in whole or in part;
(c)
Furnishes an acknowledgment of the receipt of a request within
five business days within an approximate date for granting or denying access
in whole or in part that is unreasonable under the circumstances of the request;
(d)
Fails to respond to a request within a reasonable time after
the approximate date given or within 20 business days after the date of the
acknowledgment of the receipt of a request;
(e)
Determines to grant a request in whole or in part within 20 business
days of the acknowledgment of the receipt of a request, but fails to do so,
unless the Town provides the reason for its inability to do so in writing
and a date certain within which the request will be granted in whole or in
part;
(f)
Does not grant a request in whole or in part within 20 business
days of the acknowledgment of the receipt of a request and fails to provide
the reason in writing explaining the inability to do so and a date certain
by which the request will be granted in whole or in part; or
(g)
Responds to a request, stating that more than 20 business days
are needed to grant or deny the request in whole or in part and provides a
date certain within which that will be accomplished, but such date is unreasonable
under the circumstances of the request.
C.
List of available records.
(1)
The agency shall maintain and make available for public
inspection and copying a current list by subject matter of all records in
the possession of the agency. The list shall be sufficiently detailed to permit
the requester to identify the file category of the record sought.
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
(2)
The subject matter list shall be updated periodically
and the date of the most recent updating shall appear on the first page. The
updating of the subject matter list shall not be less than semiannual.
D.
So that Town personnel can locate records within a reasonable
period of time, a request for access to records should be sufficiently detailed
to identify the records. Where possible, the requester should supply information
regarding dates, titles, file designations or other information which may
help identify the records.
E.
A request for any or all records falling within a specific
category shall conform to the standard that records be identifiable.
F.
No records may be removed by the requester from the office
where the record is located without the permission of the records access officer.
A.
The Town Board shall hear appeals for denial of access
to records under the Freedom of Information Law.
B.
Denial of access shall be in writing, stating the reason
therefor and advising the requester of his right to appeal to the Town Board.
C.
If the agency fails to provide requested records promptly, as required in § 360-8B of this chapter, such failure shall be deemed a denial of access by the agency.
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
E.
The Town Board shall inform the requester of its decision
in writing within seven business days of receipt of an appeal.
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
Except where fees or exemptions from fees have been established by law,
rule or regulation prior to September 1, 1974:
B.
The agency may charge a fee for copies of records, provided
that:
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978]
(1)
The fee for copying records shall not exceed $0.25 per
page for photocopies not exceeding 8 1/2 inches by 14 inches. This section
shall not be construed to mandate the raising of fees where the Town in the
past has charged less than $0.25 for such copies.
The Town shall publicize by posting in a conspicuous location wherever
records are kept:
A.
The location where public records shall be made available
for inspection and copying.
B.
The name, title, business address and business telephone
number of the designated records access officer and fiscal officer.
C.
The right to appeal by any requester denied access to
a record for whatever reason and the name and business address of the person
or persons or body to whom an appeal is to be directed.
[Amended 7-9-1975 by L.L.
No. 10-1975]
A.
This chapter shall be binding upon all elected officers, appointed officers, employees or agency members of the Town as those terms are defined in § 570-3 of the Code of the Town of Greenburgh.
B.
The words "Town official" and "Town personnel" as used
in this chapter shall include elected officers, appointed officers, employees
or agency members of the Town as defined above.
C.
All rules and regulations as set forth herein shall apply
to the Police Department of the Town of Greenburgh; however, the Police Department
shall have its own records access officer who shall be designated by the Chief
of Police, and all Police Department records shall be made available at police
headquarters, during all hours that the Police Department Records Division
is regularly open for business, for public inspection and copying.
[Amended 6-13-1978 by L.L.
No. 13-1978; 2-7-1979 by L.L.
No. 2-1979; 12-9-1987 by L.L.
No. 7-1987]
