[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of the Village of Waterford
as §§ 1.50 through 1.57 of the 1998 Code. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Any of the following Village entities having custody of a Village
record: an office, elected official, agency, board, commission, committee,
council, department or public body corporate and politic created by constitution,
law, ordinance, rule or order; or a formally constituted subunit of the foregoing.
That officer, department head, division head, or employee of the Village designated under § 65-3 or otherwise responsible by law to keep and preserve any Village records or file, deposit or keep such records in his or her office, or is lawfully in possession or entitled to possession of such public records and who is required by this chapter to respond to requests for access to such records.
Any material on which written, drawn, printed, spoken, visual or
electromagnetic information is recorded or preserved, regardless of physical
form or characteristics, which has been created or is being kept by an authority.
"Record" includes, but is not limited to, handwritten, typed or printed pages,
maps, charts, photographs, films, recordings, tapes (including computer tapes),
and computer printouts and optical discs. "Record" does not include drafts,
notes, preliminary computations and like materials prepared for the originator's
personal use or prepared by the originator in the name of a person for whom
the originator is working; materials which are purely the personal property
of the custodian and have no relation to his or her office; materials to which
access is limited by copyright, patent or bequest; and published materials
in the possession of an authority other than a public library which are available
for sale, or which are available for inspection at a public library.[1]
A.
Except as provided under § 65-7, each officer and employee of the Village shall safely keep and preserve all records received from his or her predecessor or other persons and required by law to be filed, deposited or kept in his or her office or which are in the lawful possession or control of the officer or employee or his or her deputies, or to the possession or control of which he or she or they may be lawfully entitled as such officers or employees.
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 his or her
successor all records then in his or her custody and the successor shall issue
a receipt therefor to the officer or employee, who shall file such receipt
with the Village Clerk. If a vacancy occurs before a successor is selected
or qualifies, such records shall be delivered to and receipted for by the
Clerk, on behalf of the successor, to be delivered to such successor upon
the latter's receipt.
A.
Each elected official is the legal custodian of his or
her records and the records of his or her office, but the official may designate
an employee of his or her staff to act as the legal custodian.
B.
Unless otherwise prohibited by law, the Village Clerk
or the Clerk's designee shall act as legal custodian for the Village Board
and for any committees, commissions, boards or other authorities created by
ordinance or resolution of the Village Board.
D.
Each legal custodian shall name a person to act as legal
custodian in his or her absence or the absence of his or her designee.
E.
The legal custodian shall have full legal power to render
decisions and to carry out the duties of an authority under Wis. Stat. ch.
19, Subch. II, and this section. The designation of a legal custodian does
not affect the powers and duties of an authority under this section.
A.
Except as provided in § 65-6, any person has a right to inspect a record and to make or receive a copy of any record as provided in Wis. Stat. § 19.35(1).
B.
Records will be available for inspection and copying
during all regular office hours.
C.
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.
D.
A requester shall be permitted to use facilities comparable
to those available to Village employees to inspect, copy or abstract a record.
E.
The legal custodian may require supervision of the requester
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.[1]
F.
A requester shall be charged a fee in an amount set by
the Village Board to defray the cost of locating and copying records as follows:
(3)
The cost of providing a copy of other records not in
printed form on paper, such as films, computer printouts and tapes or other
electronic records, shall be charged in an amount set by the Village Board,
which shall be calculated not to exceed the actual, necessary and direct cost
of reproduction.[4]
(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 therefor exceeds $10, in which case the actual cost shall
be determined by the legal custodian and billed to the requester.
(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 Village 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 he or she determines that waiver or reduction
of the fee is in the public interest.
G.
Pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 19.34 and the guidelines therein listed, each authority shall adopt, prominently display and make available for inspection and copying at its offices, for the guidance of the public, a notice containing a description of its organization and the established times and places at which, the legal custodian from whom, and the methods whereby the public may obtain information and access to records in its custody, make requests for records, or obtain copies of records, and the costs thereof. Each authority shall also prominently display at its offices, for the guidance of the public, a copy of §§ 65-4 through 65-6 of this chapter. This subsection does not apply to members of the Village Board.
A.
A request to inspect or copy a record shall be made to the legal custodian. A request shall be deemed sufficient if it reasonably describes the requested record or the information requested. However, a request for a record without a reasonable limitation as to subject matter or length of time represented by the record does not constitute a sufficient request. A request may be made orally, but a request must be in writing before an action to enforce the request is commenced under Wis. Stat. § 19.37. Except as provided below, no request may be refused because the person making the request is unwilling to be identified or to state the purpose of the request. No request may be refused because the request is received by mail, unless prepayment of a fee is required under § 65-4F(6). A requester may be required to show acceptable identification whenever the requested record is kept at a private residence or whenever security reasons or federal law or regulations so require.
B.
Each custodian, upon request for any record, shall, as
soon as practicable and without delay, either fill the request or notify the
requester of the authority's determination to deny the request in whole or
in part and the reasons therefor. If the legal custodian, after conferring
with the Village Attorney, determines that a written request is so general
as to be unduly time consuming, the party making the request may first be
required to itemize his or her request in a manner which would permit reasonable
compliance.
C.
A request for a record may be denied as provided in § 65-6. If a request is made orally, the request may be denied orally unless a demand for a written statement of the reasons denying the request is made by the requester within five business days of the oral denial. If a written request is denied in whole or in part, the requester shall receive a written statement of the reasons for denying the request. Every written denial of a request shall inform the requester that if request for the record was made in writing, then the determination is subject to review upon petition for a writ of mandamus under Wis. Stat. § 19.37(1), or upon application to the Attorney General or a district attorney.
A.
As provided by Wis. Stat. § 19.36, the following
records are exempt from inspection under this chapter:
(1)
Records specifically exempted from disclosure by state
or federal law or authorized to be exempted from disclosure by state law.
(2)
Any record relating to investigative information obtained
for law enforcement purposes if federal law or regulations require exemption
from disclosure or if exemption from disclosure is a condition to receipt
of aids by the state.
(3)
Computer programs, although the material used as input
for a computer program or the material produced as a product of the computer
program is subject to inspection.
(4)
A record or any portion of a record containing information
qualifying as a common law trade secret.
B.
As provided by Wis. Stat. § 43.30, public library
circulation records are exempt from inspection under this section.
C.
In responding to a request for inspection or copying
of a record which is not specifically exempt from disclosure, the legal custodian,
after conferring with the Village Attorney, may deny the request, in whole
or in part, only if he or she determines that the harm to the public interest
resulting from disclosure would outweigh the public interest in full access
to the requested record. Examples of matters for which disclosure may be refused
include, but are not limited to, the following:
(3)
Records of current deliberations concerning employment,
dismissal, promotion, demotion, compensation, performance or discipline of
any Village officer or employee, or the investigation of charges against a
Village officer or employee, unless such officer or employee consents to such
disclosure.
(4)
Records concerning current strategy for crime detection
or prevention.
(6)
Financial, medical, social or personal histories or disciplinary
data of specific persons which, if disclosed, would be likely to have a substantial
adverse effect upon the reputation of any person referred to in such history
or data.
(7)
Communications between legal counsel for the Village
and any officer, agent or employee of the Village, when advice is being rendered
concerning strategy with respect to litigation in which the Village or any
of its officers, agents or employees is or is likely to become involved, or
communications which are privileged under Wis. Stat. § 905.03.[4]
(8)
Records related to the licensing, dismissal, demotion,
or discipline of any public employee or person licensed by the Village or
the investigation of charges against such person, unless that person requests
that the records be open.[5]
D.
If a record contains information that may be made public
and information that may not be made public, the custodian of the record shall
provide the information that may be made public and delete the information
that may not be made public from the record before release. The custodian
shall confer with the Village Attorney prior to releasing any such record
and shall follow the guidance of the Village Attorney when separating out
the exempt material. If, in the judgment of the custodian and the Village
Attorney, there is no feasible way to separate the exempt material from the
nonexempt material without unreasonably jeopardizing nondisclosure of the
exempt material, the entire record shall be withheld from disclosure.
A.
Village officers may destroy the following nonutility
financial records of which they are the legal custodians and which are considered
obsolete, after completion of any required audit by the State of Wisconsin
or an auditor licensed under Wis. Stat. ch. 442, but not less than seven years
after payment or receipt of any sum involved in the particular transaction,
unless a shorter period has been fixed by the State Public Records Board pursuant
to Wis. Stat. § 16.61(3)(e), and then after such shorter period:[1]
B.
Village officers may destroy the following utility records
of which they are the legal custodians and which are considered obsolete after
completion of any required audit by the State of Wisconsin or an auditor licensed
under Wis. Stat. ch. 442, 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 pursuant to Wis. Stat.
§ 16.61(3)(e), and then after such a shorter period, except that
water stubs, receipts of current billings and customers' ledgers may be destroyed
after two years:[2]
C.
Village officers may destroy the following records of
which they are the legal custodian and which are considered obsolete, 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 Wis. Stat.
§ 16.61(3)(e), and then after such a shorter period:
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 as provided by Wis. Stat. § 19.21(4)(a).
E.
Any tape recordings of a governmental meeting of the
Village may be destroyed, erased or reused no sooner than 90 days after the
minutes of the meeting have been approved and published, if the purpose of
the recording was to make minutes of the meeting.
Any Village officer or the director of any department or division of Village government may, subject to the approval of the Village Board, keep and preserve public records in his or her possession through the use of microfilm or another reproductive device, optical imaging or electronic formatting. Such records shall meet the standards for photographic reproduction set forth in Wis. Stat. § 16.61(7) and shall be considered original records for all purposes. Such records shall be preserved along with other files of the department or division and shall be open to public inspection and copying according to the provisions of state law and of §§ 65-4 through 65-6 of this chapter.
