Edmonds School District No. 15
Lynnwood, WA 98036-5789
9100-R1 - PROCEDURES FOR PUBLIC ACCESS TO DISTRICT RECORDS
Adopted
3/18/74
Revised
7/19/88
9/8/93
General
1. The Executive Director of Business Services is designated as the district records officer. At each location where district records are maintained, the unit or departmental administrator shall serve as the records custodian.
2. Copies of all operating manuals, reports, handbooks, guides, procedures, policies, regulations, job descriptions, budgets, and all other bound and indexed documents produced by the district for the operation of each and all of its various entities are to be available at the Educational Service Center for public inspection and copying.
3. Public records residing in the various offices, files, storage areas, classrooms and other depositories are to be made available to any person for inspection and copying upon request unless such public records are covered by the exemption section of this regulation and/or the Laws of the State of Washington. Public records identifiable by the above description shall be located by district personnel.
4. Disclosure requests shall be referred immediately to the records officer for decision as to the appropriateness of such request. Should a decision not be possible within administrative ranks, the district's attorney may be consulted.
5. The use of district or school facilities for the purpose of copying public records is authorized providing such copying does not unreasonably disrupt the operation or function of the school, department, or office. The established district rate will be charged for all copies.
6. The records custodian of the school or appropriate department will make available to any person upon request a current listing providing information as to the public records to be found within that school or department.
7. School employees shall not give, sell, or provide access to records requested by individuals for commercial purposes.
8. The district's public records shall be available for inspection and copying during the customary office hours of the school or office where they are maintained.
9. Responses to requests for access to or reproduction of public records shall be made promptly. If such requests present the need for a decision from a school authority other than the records officer, a decision shall be rendered within a reasonable time.
10. When the records officer is unavailable to perform the aforementioned
duties, the appropriate records custodian will perform such duties.
Exemptions
1. The following shall be exempt from public inspection and copying:
a. personal information in any files maintained for students;
b. personal information in files maintained for employees, appointees or elected officials of the district to the extent that disclosure would violate their right of privacy;
c. test questions, scoring keys, and other examination data used to administer an employment or academic examination;
d. except as provided by law, the contents of real estate appraisals made for or by the district relative to the acquisition of property, until the project is abandoned or until such time as all of the property has been acquired, but in no event shall disclosure be denied for more than three years after the appraisal;
e. valuable formulae, designs, drawings, and research data obtained by the district within five years of the request for disclosure when disclosure would produce private gain and public loss;
f. preliminary drafts, notes, recommendations, intra-district memoranda and district memos in which opinions are expressed or policies formulated or recommended except that a specific record shall not be exempt when publicly cited by the district in connection with any district action; and
g. records which are relevant to a controversy to which the district is a party but which would not be available to another party under the rules of pretrial discovery for causes pending in the superior courts.
2. Information contained in a public record which would unreasonably violate personal privacy shall be deleted before inspection is allowed or, if deletion is not possible, the record shall not be made available for inspection.
3. Refusal to allow inspection of any public record in whole or in part shall include a statement of the specific exemption authorizing the withholding of the record, or part thereof, and a brief explanation of how the exemption applies to the record withheld.
4. The district may seek an injunction to prevent the disclosure of records otherwise disclosable when the superintendent determines that there is reasonable cause.
5. Since, under law, exempt records may be open to inspection or copying by court order, a court order, when delivered to the superintendent, shall supersede any previous action taken by an administrative officer of the district.
Protection of Records
1. It shall be the responsibility of the records officer and the records custodians to protect the public records in his or her care from loss, damage, or disorganization.
2. It shall be the responsibility of the records officer to prepare, gain approval of, and implement such reasonable rules and regulations dealing with public records as well as prevent excessive interference with other essential functions of the district.
Access to Records
School district records are generally available to the public. However, if doubt exists as to the propriety of sharing particular information, the following procedures apply:
1. A person requesting permission to inspect and/or copy any public records shall obtain and complete the appropriate form which will be made available by the records officer.
2. The records officer, after determining if the records requested are disclosable, will indicate his or her decision on the request form and, if the request is approved, will designate the name and location of the records custodian from whom the requested records can be obtained. If the request is denied, the records officer will state in writing on the form the specific reason(s) for denial.
3. Once the records officer has made a decision, he or she shall return the original copy of the request to the person making the request, one copy will be sent to the records custodian and one copy will be retained in the records officer's file.
4. Upon receiving his/her copy of the request showing the records officer's approval in whole or in part of the request, the records custodian will make available for inspection and copying those records specifically identified and/or will provide access to those records that have been generally identified.
5. All inspection and copying will be on the school district premises under the supervision of the records custodian. The records are not to leave the building under any circumstances nor is any portion of the record(s) to be removed or taken.
6. The records custodian will note the date and time the inspection took place and identify by description all items copied. The records custodian will notify the records officer that an inspection has taken place.