Current through Register Vol. 64, No. 3, March 1, 2025
(1) The Authority may charge a fee
reasonably calculated to reimburse the Authority for the cost of
making public records available:
(a)
Costs include but are not limited to:
(A) The services and supplies used
in making the records available;
(B) The time spent locating the
requested records, reviewing the records, and redacting, or
separating material exempt from disclosure;
(C) Supervising a person's
inspection of original documents;
(E) Certifying copies of
records;
(F) Summarizing,
compiling, or organizing the public records to meet the person's
request;
(G) Searching
for and reviewing records even if the records subsequently are
determined to be exempt from disclosure;
(H) Postal and freight charges for
shipping the copies of the public records, sent first class or bulk
rate based on weight;
(I)
Indirect costs or third party charges associated with copying and
preparing the public records; and
(J) Costs associated with
electronic retrieval of records.
(b) When a Department of Justice
review of the records is requested by the Authority, the Authority
may charge a fee equal to the Attorney General's charge for the time
spent by the attorney reviewing the public records, redacting
material from the records, and segregating the public records into
exempt and nonexempt records. A fee will not be charged for the cost
of time spent by an attorney in determining the application of the
provisions of ORS
192.410 to
192.505;
(c) Staff time shall be calculated
based on the hourly rate of pay and fringe benefits for the position
of the person performing the work;
(d) The cost for publications shall
be based on the actual costs of development, printing, and
distribution, as determined by the Authority;
(e) The cost for a public records
request requiring the Authority to access the State's mainframe
computer system, may include but not be limited to costs for computer
usage time, data transfer costs, disk work space costs, programming,
and fixed portion costs for printing and tape drive usage.
(2) The Authority shall
establish a list of fees used to charge requestors for the costs of
preparing and making available public records for the following:
(b) Facsimile copies. The Authority
may limit the transmission to thirty pages;
(c) Electronic copies, diskettes,
DVDs, and other electronically generated materials. The Authority
shall determine what electronic media for reproduction of computer
records shall be used and whether the electronic media is to be
provided by the Authority or the requestor;
(d) Audio or video
cassettes;
(3) The Authority shall review the
list of fees established in policy from time to time in order to
assure that the fees reflect current Authority costs.
(4) No additional fee shall be
charged for providing records or documents in an alternative format
when required by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
(5) The Authority shall notify
requestors of the estimated fees for making the public records
available for inspection or for providing copies to the requestor. If
the estimated fees exceed $25, the Authority shall provide written
notice and will not act further to respond to the request until the
requestor notifies the Authority, in writing, to proceed with making
the records available:
(a) The
Authority may require that all or a portion of the estimated fees be
paid before the Authority may proceed with making the record
available;
(b) The
Authority may require that actual costs of making the record
available be paid before the record is made available for inspection
or copies provided.
(6) The Director or designee may
reduce or waive fees when a determination is made that the waiver or
reduction of fees is in the public interest because making the
records available primarily benefits the general public. Factors that
may be taken into account in making such a determination include, but
are not limited to:
(a) The overall
costs to be incurred by the Authority is negligible; or
(b) Supplying the requested records
or documents is within the normal scope of Authority activity;
or
(c) Requiring payment
would cause extreme or undue financial hardship upon the requestor;
or
(d) Discovery requests
made as part of pending administrative, judicial, or arbitration
proceedings.
(7) If the Authority denies an
initial verbal request for waiver or reduction of fees, the requestor
may submit a written request. If the Authority subsequently denies
the written request for a waiver or reduction of fees, the requestor
may petition the Attorney General for a review of the denial pursuant
to the provisions of ORS
192.440(6)
and 192.450.
Stat. Auth: ORS
192.430,
413.042
Stats. Implemented: ORS
192.430,
192.440 and
192.450
