DOCJT Open Records Request Policy/Procedure
I. Purpose
The purpose of this directive is to establish policy for open records requests.
II. Policy
The Department of Criminal Justice Training shall make public records available for inspection or copying subject to Kentucky Revised Statutes 61.870 – 61.884.
III. Definitions
A record is any documentation of agency activities or administration regardless of physical form as defined in KRS 61.870 “Public Records”.
IV. Procedure
A. The Records Section supervisor is the official custodian of records for the Department of Criminal Justice Training and shall serve as the Records Custodian.
B. All agency records shall be maintained and/or destroyed in accordance with currently approved agency and state records and retention schedules unless otherwise directed by the commissioner, or designee.
C. Any employee requested to provide an agency record shall advise the requesting party to contact the Records Custodian with the official request.
D. Employees providing agency records to other employees for approved organizational processes shall have authority to provide these records without referral to the Records Custodian.
E. Open records requests may be submitted on the Office of Attorney General Standardized Open Records Form, or on official letterhead, and be signed by the requesting party, pursuant to KRS 61.872. The request may be delivered to the Records Custodian in person, by mail, or via electronic means. The requesting party shall describe the records to be inspected and indicate if the request is submitted for a commercial or noncommercial purpose. The request may be delivered, mailed, or sent electronically to:
Department of Criminal Justice Training
ATTN: Denna Brockman, Official Records Custodian
4449 Kit Carson Drive
Richmond, KY 40475
Fax: 859-622-8387
Phone: 859-622-5924
F. If a request for copies of public records is made, the agency may charge a fee, limited to the actual cost of reproduction, including material, postage, and mechanical reproduction costs, but not including the cost of personnel required to copy the records, as authorized by KRS 61.874.
1. The requesting party may be required to pay a higher charge, to include copying and personnel cost, if the records are intended to be used for a commercial purpose.
2. All fees are payable to the Kentucky State Treasurer and shall be forwarded, with the invoice, to the Accounting Section supervisor for deposit.
3. Requests sent electronically may not be charged a fee.
G. As prescribed by KRS 61.880(1), the Records Custodian, or their designee, must respond to any request for records in writing and within five working days.
1. If the records cannot be produced within five days, the Records Custodian, or their designee, shall issue a response to the requesting party, with a detailed explanation for the cause of the delay, stating the earliest date the records will be available.
H. The Open Records Act permits a public agency to withhold certain records, pursuant to the applicable statutory exemptions.
1. If the agency denies all or any part of an open records request, it must inform the requesting party of which exemption it is relying upon and explain how the exemption applies to the record.
I. All inspection or copying of public records of the Department of Criminal Justice Training shall be carried out under the supervision of the Records Custodian or their designee. This shall be done during regular office hours and at a time and place to be specified by the custodian of records.
V. Responsibility
It shall be the responsibility of the Administrative Division director to ensure compliance with this policy.