Holiday Reading-Its a must read

I will attach URL in the bottom of my post. As I eluded, there is something up and coming. It is a piece of a bigger puzzle. Please familiarize yourselves with the Indiana Open Door Law. We would like to point out the various complaints and sanctions from the Office of the Public Access Counselor and entities in Starke County for the 2008 calendar year. There is also a manual that you can read at your leisure and it is very informative.

http://www.in.gov/pac/


March 12, 2008
Nancy Garbrecht
Indiana, Illinois, Iowa Foundation for Fair Contracting
6170 Joliet Road, Suite 200
Countryside, Illinois 60525
Re: Formal Complaint 08-FC-60; Alleged Violation of the Access to Public Records
Act by the Clerk of the Starke County Circuit Court
Dear Ms. Garbrecht:
This advisory opinion is in response to a formal complaint filed by you alleging the Clerk
of the Starke County Circuit Court (“Clerk”) violated the Access to Public Records Act
(“APRA”) (Ind. Code 5-14-3) by failing to respond to your request for records. A copy of the
Clerk’s response to your complaint is enclosed for your reference. It is my opinion the Clerk’s
response was untimely under the APRA.
BACKGROUND
You allege you submitted to the Clerk a request for copies of records by letter dated
February 1, 2008 and sent via certified mail. The request was received by the Clerk on February
4. Receiving no response, you filed this complaint on February 20.
The Clerk responded to the complaint by letter dated February 21. The Clerk indicates
that after an extensive search of the records, the Clerk finds no records responsive to your
request. The Clerk contends the request should be been directed to the Starke County
Development Foundation.
ANALYSIS
The public policy of the APRA states, "(p)roviding persons with information is an
essential function of a representative government and an integral part of the routine duties of
public officials and employees, whose duty it is to provide the information." I.C. § 5-14-3-1. The
Clerk's office is clearly a public agency for the purposes of the APRA. I.C. § 5-14-3-2.
Accordingly, any person has the right to inspect and copy the public records of the Clerk's office
during regular business hours unless the public records are excepted from disclosure as
confidential or otherwise nondisclosable under the APRA. I.C. § 5-14-3-3(a).
A request for records may be oral or written. I.C. §§ 5-14-3-3(a), 5-14-3-9(c). If the
request is delivered by mail or facsimile, the agency must respond to the request within seven
days of receipt. I.C. § 5-14-3-9(b).
Here, the Clerk received your request on February 4 and did not respond until you filed a
complaint with this office. Regardless of whether records exist responsive to the request, the
Clerk is still obligated to respond to requests within seven days of receipt, when such requests
are received by mail. I.C. § 5-14-3-9(b). As such, the Clerk’s response was untimely under the
APRA.
The Clerk contends you requested records which do not exist in the Clerk’s office.
Nothing in the APRA requires a public agency to develop records or information pursuant to a
request. The APRA requires the public agency to provide access to records already created. As
such, the Clerk appropriately directed you to the agency which maintains the requested records.
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, it is my opinion the Clerk of the Starke County Circuit Court
violated the Access to Public Records Act by failing to timely respond to your request.
Best regards,
Heather Willis Neal
Public Access Counselor