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PRR 19-2720
Cc CA\ 27�'�. ciz ftuvlu v \, 4 _r � � a Renee Basel From:Martin E. O’Boyle <meo@commerce-group.com> Sent:Wednesday, May 15, 2019 8:00 AM To:Renee Basel; Rita Taylor Cc:Michelle Melicia Subject:Records Request - #2720 (per Renee) Attachments:Records Request 2720 - Gulf Stream.jpg Reference is made to the attached. Please accept this letter as formal notice (pursuant to Ch. 119.12(1)(b) Notice) that if we do not receive a full and complete response to the referenced Records Request within five (5) business days from the date of this email, we will institute a formal legal action against you, unless an agreed upon reasonable extension is requested and granted. Note: This email was prepared using dictation software. As a result, there may be errors in the content and thus the content may not be relied upon. If you wish clarification, please call or write requesting the same. Thank you. Martin E. O'Boyle, Commerce Group 1280 W. Newport Center Drive Deerfield Beach, Fl. 33442 Direct Dial: 954-570-3505 Fax: 954-360-0807 Cell: 561-383-1221 E-mail: meo@commerce-group.com Web Page: www.commerce-group.com 1 \© � 7zt i§: � s ` f;l�° ^ � / � »��� d \ w]> \{}\/} ° ,,\<�! � �� � \ � }i {� ) a i/}2 ${):zz v, ~ � TOWN OF GULF STREAM PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA Delivered via e-mail May 21, 2019 Martin E. O’Boyle [mail to: meo@commerce-group.com] Re: GS #2720 (Policies) Please provide a copy of all policies as mentioned in that certain letter from Renee Basel to Martin O'Boyle regarding GS #2705. Please provide copies of all records, including without limitation, all communications, checks, invoices and billings regarding all records requests made since January 1, 2018 wherein or in connection with a deposit or payment was requested; and a deposit or payment was made. Dear Martin E. O’Boyle [mail to: meo@commerce-group.com]: Thank you for your Facilitation Fee of $250.00 paid in cash for the public record request described above, received by the Town on May 13, 2019. The original request and correspondence can be found at the following link: http://www2.gulf-stream.org/weblink/0/doc/145092/Page1.aspx The Town of Gulf Stream policy mentioned in the letter referred to above, the Town’s Public Records Compliance Program, is located at the above link. A record of all available public records requests and related correspondence, including the Town’s requests for a deposit prior to the production of records since January 1, 2018, are located on the Town of Gulf Stream website, https://www.gulf-stream.org, by clicking on “Find a Town Record” then “Public Records Requests,” then the year (for records responsive to your request, either 2018 or 2019) and then “Public Request Number Log.” The log provides the following information for each public records request: Date Received Received By Requestor Respond to Public Records Requested Date of Intake Date of Estimate Date of Production Follow-up If you look at the log for either year, the 2018 log being 11 pages and the 2019 log currently seven pages, the “Date of Estimate” category reflects each time the Town asked for a deposit prior to the production of records, and the “Date of Production” entry also tracks when an estimate was requested if an eventual deposit was made before the Town provided the requested records. For years 2018 or 2019, all the requests and related correspondence are numbered and can be found by clicking “Public Records Requests 2018” or “Public Records Requests 2019.” The Town notes that you also seek checks, invoices, and billings related to those requests. The Town has spent considerable time in fulfilling this request, and has identified records related to you or your agents to be most of what is responsive to your request. For example, in calendar year 2018, one third of the public records requests received by the Town were from individuals, agents, or entities related to you. Before continuing further, please let us know whether you seek checks, invoices, and billings for public records requests made by you or individuals, agents, or entities related to you, or if your request only seeks checks, invoices, and billings for public records requests made by third parties not related to you or your agents. If the Town does not hear back from you within 30 days of this letter, we will consider this request closed and refund your deposit. Sincerely, Reneé Rowan Basel As requested by Rita Taylor Town Clerk, Custodian of the Records TOWN OF GULF STREAM PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA PUBLIC RECORDS COMPLIANCE PROGRAM Updated 11/2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS (1) Policies and Procedures (2) Chain of Command (3) Staff Education and Training (4) Monitoring of Incoming Requests (5) Reporting Compliance to the Town Commission (6) Enforcement of Policies (7) Annual Review Attachment A: Sample Acknowledgement Letter Attachment B: Sample Request for Clarification Letter Attachment C: Actual Cost of Duplication TOWN OF GULF STREAM PALM BEACH COUNTY, FLORIDA (1) POLICIES AND PROCEDURES 1. Introduction Florida law provides that materials made or received pursuant to law or ordinance, or in connection with the transaction of official business by the Town of Gulf Stream ("Town") are public records. Public records are different from records of businesses and private organizations, and Florida Law requires municipal records to be open for personal inspection and copying by any person. The only records that can be withheld from public disclosure are those specifically designated by the Florida Statutes as confidential or exempt, and employees and agencies do not have the authority to withhold records deemed "sensitive." This document provides employees with information necessary to understand and carry out their public records responsibilities. This document affirms the public's right to access Town records and the commitment of the Town to respond to each request in a time that is reasonable under the circumstances of each request. It also sets forth procedures to facilitate access to the information requested and to establish fees to be paid to the Town to cover the cost of responding to public records requests. 2. Policy It is the Town's policy to ensure that public records in the Town's custody are maintained and managed as required by Florida's Public Records Laws. These laws provide that materials made or received pursuant to law or ordinance, or in connection with the transaction of official business by Florida's local governments are public records. The Town encourages its citizens to use the internet to access Town documents. Agendas and meeting minutes related to the Town's business, and other documents, are often posted online. The Town responds to all public records requests in a timely manner. A Town employee is designated as the Public Records Coordinator by the Town Manager to assist with the production of public records requests, and reports directly to the Town Manager. It is the policy of the Town that all public records, with the exception of records or portions of records exempted by Florida Statutes, shall be open for personal inspection by any person. 3. Purpose The purpose of this document is to provide Town employees with the information and procedures necessary to understand and carry out their responsibilities under Florida's Public Records Laws, including the requirements for managing public records, and the manner in which public records requests are to be processed to ensure that responses to each request are organized, inclusive and in compliance with applicable statutes and rules. 4. Scope This document applies to all Town employees, who are responsible for forwarding any public records requests to the Public Records Coordinator. This document also applies to all public records of the Town, regardless of the medium in which they exist, i.e. paper or electronic. 5. Definitions a. "Public records" are all documents, papers, letters, maps, books, tapes, photographs, films, sound recordings, data processing software or other material, regardless of the physical form, characteristics, or means of transmission, made or received pursuant to law or ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official business by any agency. Florida Statutes §119.011(12). b. "Confidential" means public records that have been identified in the Florida Statutes as confidential. The information in these records is not subject to inspection by the public and may be released only to the persons and entities designated in the statute. c. "Exempt" means public records that have been identified in Florida Statutes Chapter 119 or other applicable Florida Statutes as exempt from public disclosure. d. "Inactive records" means records which have lost some of their value or have been superseded by new records, but have not reached their specified retention. Records that are referenced less than once per month are usually considered inactive. e. "GSI -SL" means the General Records Schedule GS 1 -SL for State and Local Government Agencies which is available at http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/recordsmgmt/gen records schedules.cfm. 6. Records Management Records Management entails retention, storage, disposition and all other record-keeping requirements and practices that support Department programs, activities, operations and accomplishments in order to best serve the public. These activities should consider the following: a. Organization and Maintenance: Public Records shall be organized, arranged, and maintained using a filing or record keeping system that is appropriate to the nature, purpose, and use of the records, can be easily understood by all users, and facilitates the location of and access to those records by all users, when and where it is needed. b. Retention of Records: The Town follows the General Records Schedule GSI -SL for State and Local Government Agencies and other General Records Schedules that may apply to specific records maintained by the Town, e.g. records pertaining to Law Enforcement. c. Disposition of Records: The Town should systematically dispose of public records that have met their retention requirements and are no longer needed. The Town Clerk or other designated records custodian must properly document disposition of public records. A records disposition document form is available from the Division of Library and Information Services website at http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/barn/forms/dispositiondoc.pdf. The Town Clerk or other designated records custodian must permanently retain completed disposition forms. 7. Procedures for Responding to a Public Records Request A public records request is a request to either inspect, or copy, or both, public records pursuant to Florida Statutes Chapter 119. There is no requirement that the request be made in person or in writing, or be in any particular form. The person making the request is not required to identify himself or herself, or to provide information about the reason for the request, or how the records will be used. The Town must respond to all public records requests in a reasonable time, taking into account the extent, scope, and nature of the request. If a request is extremely narrow in scope, and a document is immediately available, and time and costs spent to provide access or to otherwise respond to a public records request are nominal, then Town employees and contractors are encouraged to fulfill the request at the time it is made. Production of documents that are $1.00 or less will be provided free of charge. In all cases, the Town employee or contractor should also notify the Public Records Coordinator of a public records request. The Town of Gulf Stream has developed the following internal procedures to respond to a public records request and assist the public in obtaining public records: a. Mark public records requests as received. If the request is received by someone other than the Public Records Coordinator, the employee will forward the request to the Public Records Coordinator, who will then add the request to the Public Records Log for monitoring purposes. b. Acknowledge receipt of a public records request. As soon as reasonably possible after the receipt of a Public Records Request, the Town of Gulf Stream should acknowledge the request in writing. A sample letter is provided as Attachment A. The letter may also notify the requestor of the possibility of costs, may provide an estimate of costs, or may request a deposit for costs, as further discussed below. c. Request clarification, as needed. As a courtesy to the requestor to ensure the proper documents are produced or an accurate estimate is provided, the Town may send correspondence asking a requestor to clarify the request before proceeding with production or an estimate. Requests for clarification may be sent out when a request is very broad in scope, ambiguous, or if the Public Records Coordinator otherwise determines that he or she needs further clarification to fulfill the request. A sample letter is provided as Attachment B. d. Coordinate with contractors, commissioners and other third parties, as needed. Some public records requests may relate to documents not currently in the possession of the Town. For example, documents may be in the possession of a commission member or member of a Town board, the Town Attorney, or a contractor to the Town. If requests for public records are received by persons who are not Town employees, the Public Records Coordinator should be notified, and should provide the necessary coordination to ensure a proper effort to respond to the public records request. The Public Records Coordinator should also consult with the Town Attorney to ensure that confidential or exempt records, or otherwise private records, are not unnecessarily produced. e. Provide an estimate of costs. For public records requests exceeding $1, the Public Records Coordinator may provide an estimate of the cost to produce the documents, either in the acknowledgement letter, or in separate correspondence. Estimates should contain an itemized breakdown of costs per page and special service charges. The Town Clerk or designee shall collect the deposit and the Town will commence production of documents only after receiving a deposit. Deposit fees may be paid by cash, check, or money order made payable to the Town of Gulf Stream. If an estimate proves too high, overpayments will be promptly refunded when the public records request is closed. If an estimate proves too low, the Town will provide a partial production of documents, and provide a new deposit request before resuming work. Factors to be considered when developing an estimate of costs associated with a response to a public records request are as follows: " C o s t s o f d u p l i c a t i o n W h e n a r e q u e s t d o e s n o t r e q u i r e e x t e n s i v e u s e o f i n f o r m a t i o n t e c h n o l o g y r e s o u r c e s o r e x t e n s i v e c l e r i c a l o r s u p e r v i s o r y a s s i s t a n c e , t h e e s t i m a t e s h a l l b e c a l c u l a t e d b y F l a . S t a t . � 1 1 9 . 0 7 ( 4 ) : u p t o 1 5 c e n t s m a y b e c h a r g e d p e r o n e - s i d e d c o p y o f n o t m o r e t h a n 1 4 x 8 '