PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS

Reference: W.S. §16-4-201 through 16-4-205 

The Legislature of the State of Wyoming enacted the Wyoming Public Records Act to provide the public with access to public records, books, and files of state governmental agencies (subject to exceptions).

The purpose of the Act is to promote disclosure and not secrecy in the workings of government.

Definitions:

• Designated Public Records Person: The person designated as required by W.S. § 16-4-202(e). Public Records requests are processed by the Institutional Effectiveness office.  The Designated Public Records Person or their designee shall ensure that procedures are publicly available detailing:
• How to request public records;
• How long will it take the College to respond to the request;
• What fees, if any, are applicable and due at the time a public records request is made;
• If the request is denied, the reason for the denial.

• Public Records: Includes any information in a physical form created, accepted, or obtained by the state or any agency, institution or political subdivision of the state in furtherance of its official function and transaction of public business which is not privileged or confidential by law. Without limiting the foregoing, the term “public records” includes any written communication or other information, whether in paper, electronic, or other physical form, received by the state or any agency, institution or political subdivision of the state in furtherance of the transaction of public business of the state or agency, institution or political subdivision of the state, whether at a meeting or outside a meeting. W.S. §16-4-201(a)(v).
• Requestor: The person or entity that is submitting the Public Records request.

Western Wyoming Community College (the College) is subject to the Wyoming Public Records Act.  The College will comply with Wyoming law regarding disclosure of any responsive records, including reviewing for any applicable exemptions to disclosure. The law does not require the College to create or compile a record which does not exist at the time of the request.

Adopted October 19, 2021

Procedure 1120B

PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS

Reference: Policy 1120B; Policy 3910H; Policy 4110B; Policy 5110C

The following document outlines the procedures for requesting Public Records, including when a fee may be charged related to a Public Records request.

Submitting a Request
All requests for Public Records, including athletic agreements, requests from the media, and general records requests should be submitted in writing to the Institutional Effectiveness office via the Records Request Form, available in the Institutional Effectiveness office.

Requests for student directory information are subject to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Please contact the Office of the Registrar for student directory information.

Notification Request has been Received
The College will notify the Requestor of the acknowledgment of the receipt of the request within seven (7) business days after receiving the request. The notification will include acknowledgment of the request, whether a fee is required, the amount of that fee, and the date by which the College will respond in accordance with the law.

Response Time

1. Upon receiving a Public Records request, the Designated Public Records Person will work with the department or unit that houses the potentially responsive records to determine the estimated time it will take to compile and review the records, and whether a fee will be charged. Once that is complete, the College will send the notification to the Requestor as described above.
2. Pursuant to the Wyoming Public Records Act, the College will release any responsive records within thirty (30) calendar days from the date of acknowledged receipt unless good cause exists to prevent the release of responsive records within that time frame.
3. Good cause includes consideration of whether the records are privileged or confidential by law or whether release of the records impairs or impedes the governmental entity's ability to discharge its other duties, such as complexity and volume of the request and delay in payment of fees.
4. If good cause exists to prevent the release of records within thirty (30) calendar days, the records will be released on a date that is mutually agreed upon by the College and the Requestor.

Denial of requests or withholding of records
The Designated Public Records Person reviews all records requests. Part of this review includes determining whether any legal grounds for exemption or withholding of records apply. If a request is denied, in whole or in part, the College will include in its written response the reason or reasons for the denial under the Wyoming Public Records Act.

Fees
If a fee is to be charged, the College will only begin the process of compiling and reviewing the       records when the fee has been paid by the Requestor. A delay in payment of the fee may cause a delay in the release of the records.

1. If the College does not receive a response or payment from a Requestor within thirty (30) calendar days of the last communication from the College to the Requestor, the College will send a notification of administrative closure to the Requestor. The notification shall state that the request will be administratively closed after thirty (30) calendar days from the date of notification unless the Requestor sends a response confirming that they want the request to move forward.
2. If the request is administratively closed, it does not prevent the Requestor or any other Requestor from submitting the same request in the future.

Pursuant to the Wyoming Public Records Act (W.S. §16-4-202), the College charges Requestors for reasonable production and construction costs.

1. The College’s fees, costs and charges for inspecting, copying and producing public records can be obtained from the Institutional Effectiveness office.
2. The Requestor will be charged only if the amount of the reasonable production and construction costs exceeds the default assessment threshold, and the Requestor will be charged only for the amount above that threshold. The Designated Public Records Person has the sole discretion to consolidate public records requests they believe have been drafted and submitted to avoid the default assessment threshold.

Process for Determining Reasonable Production and Construction Costs

Prior to processing the Public Records request, the Designated Public Records Person will work with the relevant College department(s) or unit(s) to determine whether the estimated time to be spent reviewing and responding to the request will cause the reasonable production and construction costs to exceed the default assessment threshold. If so, the Requestor will receive an invoice with the estimated reasonable production and construction costs of the request.

1. Payment must be received before the request will be processed. As stated above, a delay in payment of the fee may result in a delay in the release of the records.
2. In that situation, the College will contact the Requestor to determine an agreed upon date to release the records.
3. If the request takes less time than estimated, the Requestor will receive a refund for the amount of money that was unused.
4. If the request takes more time than estimated, the Requestor will receive the responsive records to that point and a separate invoice with the estimated cost for the completion of the request. Payment must be received before the Designated Public Records Person will continue processing the request.
5. Requestors will not be allowed to avoid the charge by using multiple records requests.

 

Adopted October 19, 2021