63G-2-204. Record request — Response — Time for responding.
(1)
Terms Used In Utah Code 63G-2-204
Audit: means :
(a)
a systematic examination of financial, management, program, and related records for the purpose of determining the fair presentation of financial statements, adequacy of internal controls, or compliance with laws and regulations; or
(b)
a systematic examination of program procedures and operations for the purpose of determining their effectiveness, economy, efficiency, and compliance with statutes and regulations. See Utah Code 63G-2-103
Case law: The law as laid down in cases that have been decided in the decisions of the courts.
Governmental entity: means :
(i)
executive department agencies of the state, the offices of the governor, lieutenant governor, state auditor, attorney general, and state treasurer, the Board of Pardons and Parole, the Board of Examiners, the National Guard, the Career Service Review Office, the State Board of Education, the Utah Board of Higher Education, and the State Archives;
(ii)
the Office of the Legislative Auditor General, Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst, Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel, the Legislature, and legislative committees, except any political party, group, caucus, or rules or sifting committee of the Legislature;
(iii)
courts, the Judicial Council, the Administrative Office of the Courts, and similar administrative units in the judicial branch;
(iv)
any state-funded institution of higher education or public education; or
(v)
any political subdivision of the state, but, if a political subdivision has adopted an ordinance or a policy relating to information practices pursuant to Section 63G-2-701, this chapter shall apply to the political subdivision to the extent specified in Section 63G-2-701 or as specified in any other section of this chapter that specifically refers to political subdivisions. See Utah Code 63G-2-103
Record: means a book, letter, document, paper, map, plan, photograph, film, card, tape, recording, electronic data, or other documentary material regardless of physical form or characteristics:
(i)
that is prepared, owned, received, or retained by a governmental entity or political subdivision; and
(ii)
where all of the information in the original is reproducible by photocopy or other mechanical or electronic means. See Utah Code 63G-2-103
Record series: means a group of records that may be treated as a unit for purposes of designation, description, management, or disposition. See Utah Code 63G-2-103
(a)
A person making a request for a record shall submit to the governmental entity that retains the record a written request containing:
(i)
the person’s:
(A)
name;
(B)
mailing address;
(C)
email address, if the person has an email address and is willing to accept communications by email relating to the person’s records request; and
(D)
daytime telephone number; and
(ii)
a description of the record requested that identifies the record with reasonable specificity.
(b)
(i)
A single record request may not be submitted to multiple governmental entities.
(ii)
Subsection (1)(b)(i) may not be construed to prevent a person from submitting a separate record request to each of multiple governmental entities, even if each of the separate requests seeks access to the same record.
(2)
(a)
In response to a request for a record, a governmental entity may not provide a record that it has received under Section 63G-2-206 as a shared record.
(b)
If a governmental entity is prohibited from providing a record under Subsection (2)(a), the governmental entity shall:
(i)
deny the records request; and
(ii)
inform the person making the request of the identity of the governmental entity from which the shared record was received.
After receiving a request for a record, a governmental entity shall:
(a)
review each request that seeks an expedited response and notify, within five business days after receiving the request, each requester that has not demonstrated that their record request benefits the public rather than the person that their response will not be expedited; and
(b)
as soon as reasonably possible, but no later than 10 business days after receiving a written request, or five business days after receiving a written request if the requester demonstrates that expedited response to the record request benefits the public rather than the person:
(i)
approve the request and provide a copy of the record;
(ii)
deny the request in accordance with the procedures and requirements of Section 63G-2-205;
(iii)
notify the requester that it does not maintain the record requested and provide, if known, the name and address of the governmental entity that does maintain the record; or
(iv)
notify the requester that because of one of the extraordinary circumstances listed in Subsection (6), it cannot immediately approve or deny the request, and include with the notice:
(A)
a description of the circumstances that constitute the extraordinary circumstances; and
(B)
the date when the records will be available, consistent with the requirements of Subsection (7).
(5)
Any person who requests a record to obtain information for a story or report for publication or broadcast to the general public is presumed to be acting to benefit the public rather than a person.
(6)
The following circumstances constitute “extraordinary circumstances” that allow a governmental entity to delay approval or denial by an additional period of time as specified in Subsection (7) if the governmental entity determines that due to the extraordinary circumstances it cannot respond within the time limits provided in Subsection (4):
(a)
another governmental entity is using the record, in which case the originating governmental entity shall promptly request that the governmental entity currently in possession return the record;
(b)
another governmental entity is using the record as part of an audit, and returning the record before the completion of the audit would impair the conduct of the audit;
(c)
(i)
the request is for a voluminous quantity of records or a record series containing a substantial number of records; or
(ii)
the requester seeks a substantial number of records or records series in requests filed within five working days of each other;
(d)
the governmental entity is currently processing a large number of records requests;
(e)
the request requires the governmental entity to review a large number of records to locate the records requested;
(f)
the decision to release a record involves legal issues that require the governmental entity to seek legal counsel for the analysis of statutes, rules, ordinances, regulations, or case law;
(g)
segregating information that the requester is entitled to inspect from information that the requester is not entitled to inspect requires extensive editing; or
(h)
segregating information that the requester is entitled to inspect from information that the requester is not entitled to inspect requires computer programming.
(7)
If one of the extraordinary circumstances listed in Subsection (6) precludes approval or denial within the time specified in Subsection (4), the following time limits apply to the extraordinary circumstances:
(a)
for claims under Subsection (6)(a), the governmental entity currently in possession of the record shall return the record to the originating entity within five business days of the request for the return unless returning the record would impair the holder’s work;
(b)
for claims under Subsection (6)(b), the originating governmental entity shall notify the requester when the record is available for inspection and copying;
(c)
for claims under Subsections (6)(c), (d), and (e), the governmental entity shall:
(i)
disclose the records that it has located which the requester is entitled to inspect;
(ii)
provide the requester with an estimate of the amount of time it will take to finish the work required to respond to the request;
(iii)
complete the work and disclose those records that the requester is entitled to inspect as soon as reasonably possible; and
(iv)
for any person that does not establish a right to an expedited response as authorized by Subsection (4), a governmental entity may choose to:
(A)
require the person to provide for copying of the records as provided in Subsection 63G-2-201(10); or
(B)
treat a request for multiple records as separate record requests, and respond sequentially to each request;
(d)
for claims under Subsection (6)(f), the governmental entity shall either approve or deny the request within five business days after the response time specified for the original request has expired;
(e)
for claims under Subsection (6)(g), the governmental entity shall fulfill the request within 15 business days from the date of the original request; or
(f)
for claims under Subsection (6)(h), the governmental entity shall complete its programming and disclose the requested records as soon as reasonably possible.
(8)
(a)
If a request for access is submitted to an office of a governmental entity other than that specified by rule in accordance with Subsection (3), the office shall promptly forward the request to the appropriate office.
(b)
If the request is forwarded promptly, the time limit for response begins when the request is received by the office specified by rule.
(9)
If the governmental entity fails to provide the requested records or issue a denial within the specified time period, that failure is considered the equivalent of a determination denying access to the record.
