6.2 The Records and Elections Division, Archives and Records Management Section, shall maintain a countywide public disclosure index and publish that index on its web site.
(A) Make the requested records available for inspection and copying; or (B) Acknowledge receipt of the request and provide, in writing, a reasonable estimate of when the records will be available (see attached sample letter in appendix A); or
(C) If the request is unclear or does not sufficiently identify the requested records, send a written request for clarification to the requestor; or
(D) Deny the request in writing in accordance with Washington law.
6.4 Questions about public disclosure that require legal interpretation beyond those addressed in this policy should be referred to the King County Public Disclosure Officer or the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. If a public records request comes in the form of a subpoena, or involves pending or threatening litigation against the county, the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office must be promptly notified.
6.5 Public records requests received from a labor union representing King County employees should be reviewed the Labor relations section of the Human Resources Division when they are received.
6.6 King County offices and departments, via websites and other publications, will publish staff contacts to whom public disclosure requests should be directed. These same staff will also serve as “points of contact” for citizens with questions about public disclosure or public record request procedures.
6.7 Citizens interested in making a public disclosure request should be encouraged to do so in writing. Nevertheless, public disclosure requests, by statute, must also be accepted electronically via e-mail and fax, or verbally, either in person or over the telephone. The substance of verbal requests should be promptly confirmed in writing to the requestor.
6.8 King County offices and departments, when providing records for public inspection, must make records available for inspection and copying during the customary office hours. The office or department and the requestor can also make mutually agreed-upon arrangements for inspection and copying.
6.9 King County offices and departments must “protect public records from damage or disorganization”. RCW 42.56.100. Therefore, requestors should not be allowed to take original records out of the county office. Extremely large copying requests can be completed by an outside copying vendor, who then provides copies directly to the requestor. The responsible office or department will manage the transfer of original records between the office and the vendor.
6.10 For records exempt from disclosure, the public disclosure officer will state the statutory exemption and provide a brief explanation of why the record or a portion of the record is being withheld. If only a portion of the record is exempt from disclosure, but the remainder is not exempt, the public disclosure officer will redact the exempt portions, provide the non-exempt portions, and indicate to the requestor why portions of the record are being redacted. All such documentation as described in this section may be specified in either a transmittal letter or a withholding index.
6.11 Consistent with other demands, County offices and departments shall provide space to inspect public records.
6.12 After inspection is complete, the assigned public disclosure officer or designee shall copy the requested records or arrange for copying.
6.13 There is no fee for inspecting public records. A requestor may obtain standard black and white copies for ($.15) cents per page. The county may also charge the actual cost of mailing.
6.14 King County offices and departments cannot deny a request for being “overbroad”. However, when a request is for a large number of records, the public disclosure officer should provide access for inspection and copying in installments if that officer reasonably determines that it would be practical to provide responsive records in such fashion. If, within thirty days, the requestor fails to inspect the entire set of records in one or more installments, the public disclosure officer may stop searching for responsive records and close the request. The public disclosure officer shall promptly notify the requestor in writing when a request is closed.
6.15 If, after the county office has informed the requestor that it has provided all available records and then becomes aware of responsive material that was not initially disclosed, it will promptly inform the requestor of the additional documents and provide them on an expedited basis.
6.16 County offices may not distinguish among persons requesting records, and such persons shall not be required to provide information as to the purpose of the request; unless it must be determined whether a request for a list of names is being requested for commercial purposes, or information is needed to determine whether another statute prohibits disclosure.
6.17 King County offices are not obligated to create new records in order to respond to a public disclosure request. However, there may be circumstances in which creating a new record is the most practical course of action. Public disclosure officers needing assistance with such a scenario should promptly contact either the King County Public Disclosure Officer or the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
6.18 King County offices may only request clarification of an unclear request or a request for which responsive records cannot be identified.
6.19 King County will publish a current list containing laws, other than those listed in RCW chapter 42.56, that King County believes exempt or prohibit disclosure of public records.
Action By: Department/Agency Public Disclosure Officers Action:
7.1 Receive request for public records.
7.2 Date stamp and log into the Public Disclosure Tracker all public disclosure requests so that the agency has a record of the date of receipt of the request, as well as what specific records are being requested.
7.3 Respond to the request in writing within five (5) business days by making the records available for inspection and copying or by taking one of the other actions detailed in section 6.3 of this policy.
7.4 In the event that the requested records contain information that may affect the rights of others and is arguably exempt from disclosure, the public disclosure officer may, prior to providing the records, give notice to such others whose rights may be affected by the disclosure. Such notice should be given so as to make it possible for those other persons to contact the requestor and ask him or her to revise the request, or, if necessary, seek an order from a court to prevent or limit the disclosure. The notice to the affected persons will include a copy of the request. Before any such notification is sent to affected parties, the office or department shall coordinate with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
7.5 If the agency cannot provide the requestor with access to or copies of the requested records that are subject to disclosure within the appropriate estimated timeframe, inform the requestor in writing of the additional time that it will take to produce the records. Additional time to respond is appropriate only where it is reasonable in light of the circumstances, e.g., while gathering the requested records, it is determined that they are more voluminous or less readily accessible than originally believed.
7.6 If a denial or partial denial occurs, remove the records or partial records from the disclosable materials. All denials or partial denials must be documented in writing to the requestor, either in a transmittal letter or in the form of a withholding index. The proper format for a withholding index is documented on line in the Public Disclosure Manual.
7.7 If the requestor protests the department decision, refer to either the King County Public Disclosure Officer or the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
7.8 Inspection should occur at a time mutually agreed upon by the requestor and the agency. The county shall not limit times of inspection to times during which the requestor is unavailable. Requestors cannot dictate unusual times for inspection. The county is only obligated to offer inspection during customary office hours. Typically, the records are produced for inspection in a conference room or other office area. The inspection of records cannot create excessive interference with essential office functions. A county office may have an employee observe the inspection or copying of records by the requestor to ensure that the records are not altered or destroyed.
8.1 All Executive-branch employees will follow the procedures outlined in this policy. 8.2 All Executive Departments are responsible for:
(A) Appointing a staff member(s) who is responsible for reviewing, processing, and/or coordinating with the King County Public Disclosure Officer and/or the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to ensure quality and timely responses to public disclosure requests.
(B) Logging all public disclosure requests into the Public Disclosure Tracker; as well as updating the log as individual response actions progress.
(C) Establishing protocols for managing public disclosure responses in the absence of the department’s appointed public disclosure officer(s).
(D) Sending appointed public disclosure officers to public disclosure-related training sessions as they are developed and advertised by the King County Public Disclosure Officer.
(E) Alerting the King County Public Disclosure Officer of public disclosure requests which are unusually difficult or large in scope.
(F) Forwarding responsive records in a timely fashion to the department’s appointed Public Disclosure Officer when such records are requested in order to process a public disclosure response.
8.3 The King County Public Disclosure Officer is responsible for:
(A) Providing internal instructions to county departments on public disclosure and the procedures described in this policy.
(B) Assisting Executive Branch agencies with unusually large or difficult public disclosure requests.
(C) Developing training protocols for all King County public disclosure officers.
(D) Developing guidance resources for public disclosure officers, such as the on-line Public Disclosure Manual.
8.4 Archives and Records Management is responsible for assisting departments in properly documenting their records series and indicating public disclosure status.
9.0 APPENDICES:
9.1 Sample 5-day letter [opens .pdf file] acknowledging receipt of a public disclosure request and providing a reasonable estimate of when the records will be available.
