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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - 2013.06.13 - 20858MISCELLANEOUS RESOLUTION #13153 June 13, 2013 BY: Finance Committee, Tom Middleton, Chairperson RE: DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY — REVISION OF THE ENHANCED ACCESS POLICY TO ADD CLARITY AND TO GRANT AUTHORITY TO CERTAIN PUBLIC BODIES TO WAIVE CERTAIN ENHANCED ACCESS FEES To the Oakland County Board of Commissioners Chairperson, Ladies and Gentlemen: WHEREAS Public Act 462 of 1996, the Enhanced Access to Public Records Act, being MCL 15.441 et seq., allows public bodies to provide enhanced access for the inspection, copying, or purchasing of a public record that is not confidential or otherwise exempt by law from disclosure; and WHEREAS the legislation further allows that public body to (Marge a reasonable fee, established by the public body's governing body, for providing enhanced access; and WHEREAS the legislation requires that a public body who wishes to provide such enhanced access, must produce a policy, approved by the governing body; and WHEREAS, the Oakland County Board of Commissioners enacted and approved such a policy, The Enhanced Access to Public Records Policy dated August, 1997 (attached), through Miscellaneous Resolution #97165; and WHEREAS, the Policy includes a provision for charging a reasonable fee as well as a waiver or reduction of fee, if the waiver or reduction is in the public interest; and WHEREAS, the public interest is defined as access or enhanced access that is primarily benefitting the general public; and WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners recognizes that a waiver or reduction of fees for certain educational purposes is in the public interest and that the Policy should be revised for additional clarity regarding such; and WHEREAS the Board of Commissioners has determined that efficiencies and cost effectiveness are gained by granting authority to certain public bodies to waive enhanced access fees of less than $750 on behalf of the Board, if the fee waiver is in the public interest; and WHEREAS a revised Policy has been drafted (as attached) by the County's Corporation Counsel to add clarity regarding waiver or reduction of fees for certain educational purposes and to grant authority to certain public bodies to waive certain enhanced access fees on behalf of the Board; and WHEREAS the revisions are itemized in the attached Inventory of Changes to the Enhanced Access to Public Records Policy for ease of tracking. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Commissioners approves the revised Enhanced Access to Public Records Policy dated May, 2013. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that no budget amendment is required at this time. Chairperson, on behalf of the Finance Committee I move the adoption of the foregoing resolution. FINANCE COMMITTEE VOTE: Motion carried unanimously on a roll call vote. ENHANCED ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY Oakland County, Michigan August 1997 This policy is established pursuant to the authority of the Enhanced Access to Public Records Act, 1996 P.A. 462. 1, DEFINITIONS A. "Enhanced access" mean's a public record's immediate availability for public inspection, purchase or copying by digital means. Enhanced access does not include the transfer of ownership of a public record. B. "Geographical information system" means an informational unit or network capable of producing customized maps based upon a digital representation of geographical data. C. "Person" means that term as defined in section 2 of the freedom of information act, Act No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, being section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. D. "Public Body" means that term as defined in section 2 of the freedom of information act, Act No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, being section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. E. "Public Record" means that term as defined in section 2 of the freedom of information act, Act No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, being section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. F. "Software" means that term as defined in section 2 of the enhanced access to public records act, Act No. 462 of the Public Acts of 1996, being section 15.442 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. 2. AUTHORIZATION A. Pursuant to 1996 P.A. 462, all Oakland County government public bodies may provide enhanced access for the inspection, copying, or purchasing of a public record that is not confidential or otherwise exempt by law from disclosure. [Sec. 3(1)(a); Sec.3(3)]. B. This policy does not require a public body to provide enhanced access to any specific public record. [See. 3(4)]. C. County elected officials, department heads, agencies, boards, commissions and councils legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of a public record shall select which public records may be made through enhanced access. D. Principles and policies to be considered in determining which public records shall be made available through enhanced access include, but are not limited to the following: I. Management principles applied to information resources should be the same as those applied to other governmental resources. 2. Elected officials, department heads, agencies, boards, commissions, councils and other county public bodies legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of a public record have the responsibility, authority and accountability for the management of public record information. 3. Information resources investments must be driven by legal, programmatic and governmental requirements. 4. Oakland County government, in trust for the people of Oakland County, has a duty to ensure ownership of information products and county created intellectual property is protected and maintained. 3. FEES A. It is the policy of Oakland County to charge a reasonable fee for providing enhanced access to a public record. [See. 3(I)(b)] B. It is the policy of Oakland County to charge a reasonable fee for providing access to: (i) A geographical information system. (ii) The output from a geographical information system. C. "Reasonable fee" means a charge calculated to enable Oakland County to recover over time only those operating expenses directly related to the public body's provision of enhanced access. D. "Operating expenses" includes, but is not limited to, a public body's direct cost of creating, compiling, storing, maintaining, processing, upgrading, or enhancing information or data in a form available for enhanced access, including the cost of computer hardware and software, systems development, employee time, and the actual cost of supplying the information or record in the form requested by the purchaser. E. Except as otherwise provided by act or statute, the Fiscal Services Division shall establish a proposed reasonable fee(s) for each public record made available for enhanced access or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical information system. The proposed fee(s) shall be presented to and approved by the Board of Commissioners before they shall be effective. F. Except as otherwise provided by act or statute, all persons shall be charged the reasonable fee approved by the Board of Commissioners for enhanced access to a public record or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical information system. G. A public body may furnish access or enhanced access without charge or at a reduced charge if the public body determines that a waiver or reduction of fee is in the public interest because access or enhanced access can be considered as primarily benefiting the general public. Examples may include, but are not limited to, instances when: . The information is critical to public health or safety; 2. The information is required for non-profit research purposes such as academic or public interest research; 3, The information is required to meet legal, programmatic or governmental objectives; 4. The information explains the rights, entitlements and/or obligations of individuals; 5. The cost of administering the fees would exceed the revenue to be collected; 6. The reasonable fee established would have a serious detrimental impact on the financial position of particular groups or classes of users; 7. The reasonable fee established would limit the number of users enough to compromise achieving program or other governmental objectives. H. Waiver or fee reductions shall be decided by the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question. The waiver or fee reductions shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners prior to the award of that waiver or reduction. 4. DISCLAIMER A. Recipients of access or enhanced access receive all information "AS IS". The County of Oakland, its officers, officials, employees, agents, volunteers, contractors or its public bodies, make no warranties of any kind, including but not limited to warranties of accuracy, fitness for a particular purpose, or of a recipient's right of use. Recipients are solely responsible for investigating, resisting, litigating and settling such complaints, including the payment of any damages or costs, unless the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, by resolution adopted by a majority of those elected and serving, elects to participate in the process at the County's expense. B. Except for the Board of Commissioners, by resolution adopted by a majority of those elected and serving, no officer, official, employee, agent, volunteer, contractor or other person or public body may make any representation or warranty on behalf of the County or one of its public bodies. ENHANCED ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY Oakland County, Michigan May, 2013 This policy is established pursuant to the authority of the Enhanced Access to Public Records Act, 1996 P.A., 462, being MCL 15.441 et seq. 1. DEFINITIONS a. "Enhanced access" means a public record's immediate availability for public inspection, purchase or copying by digital means. Enhanced access does not include the transfer of ownership of a public record. b. "Geographical information system" means an informational unit or network capable of producing customized maps based upon a digital representation or geographical data. c. "Person" means that term as defined in Section 2 of the Freedom of Information Act, 1976 P.A. 442, and being Section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. d. "Public Body" means that term as defined in Section 2 of the Freedom of Information Act, No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, and being Section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. e. "Public Record" means that term as defined in Section 2 of the Freedom of Information Act, No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, and being Section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. f. "Software" means that term as defined in Section 2 of the Freedom of Information Act, No. 442 of the Public Acts of 1976, and being Section 15.232 of the Michigan Compiled Laws. 2. AUTHORIZATION a. Pursuant to 1996 P.A. 462, all Oakland County government public bodies may provide enhanced access for the inspection, copying or purchasing of a public record that is not confidential or otherwise exempt by law from disclosure [Sec. 3(1)(a); Sec. 3(3)]. b. This policy does not require a public body to provide enhanced access to any specific public record [Sec. 3(4)]. c. County elected officials, department heads, agencies, boards, commissions and councils legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of a public record shall select which public records may be made available through enhanced access. d. Principles and policies to be considered in determining which public records shall be made available through enhanced access include, but are not limited to, the following: i. Management principles applied to information resources should be the same as those applied to other governmental resources. ii. Elected officials, department heads, agencies, boards, commissions, councils and other county public bodies legally responsible for the creation preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of a public record have the responsibility, authority and accountability for the management of public record information. iii. Information resources investments must be driven by legal, programmatic and governmental requirements. iv. Oakland County government, in trust for the people of Oakland County, has a duty to ensure ownership of information products and county created intellectual property is protected and maintained. 3. FEES a. It is the policy of Oakland County to charge a reasonable fee for providing enhanced access to a public record [Sec. 3( 1)(b)l. b. It is the policy of Oakland County to charge a reasonable fee for providing access to: i. A geographical information system. The output from a geographical information system. c. "Reasonable fee" means a charge calculated to enable Oakland County to recover over time only those operating expenses directly related to the public body's provision of enhanced access. d, "Operating expenses" include, but are not limited to, a public body's direct cost of creating, compiling, storing, maintaining, processing, upgrading, or enhancing information or data in a form available for enhanced access, including the cost of computer hardware and software, systems development, employee time, and the actual cost of supplying the information or record in the form requested by the purchaser. e. Except as otherwise provided by act or statute, the Fiscal Services Division shall establish proposed reasonable fee(s) for each public record made available for enhanced access or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical information system. The proposed fee(s) shall be presented to and approved by the Board of Commissioners before they shall be effective. Except as otherwise provided by act, statute or Section 3(g) of this policy, all persons shall be charged the reasonable fee approved by the Board of Commissioners for enhanced access to a public record or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical information system. g. A public body may furnish access or enhanced access without charge or at a reduced charge if the public body determines that a waiver or reduction of fee is in the public interest because access or enhanced access can be considered as primarily benefitting the general public or serving an educational purpose. Examples include, but are not limited to, instances when: i. The information is critical to public health or safety; ii. The information is required for non-profit research purposes such as academic or public interest research; iii. The information is required to meet legal, programmatic or governmental objectives; iv. The information explains the rights, entitlements and/or obligations of individuals; v. The cost of administering the fees would exceed the revenue to be collected; vi. The reasonable fee established would have a serious detrimental impact on the financial position of particular groups or classes of users; vii. The information is requested by a student for use in an educational or academic project or assignment; viii. The information is requested for inclusion in educational or training materials; ix. The reasonable fee established would limit the number of users enough to compromise achieving program or other governmental objectives. 11. Waiver or fee reductions may be granted by the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council, or other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question. I. If the enhanced access fee for the requested products is less than $750 and a waiver or reduction of fees is in the public interest, the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council, or other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question, in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology may approve a waiver or fee reduction without further action of the Board of Commissioners. If the enhanced access fee for the requested products is equal to or greater than $750, the waiver or fee reduction shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners prior to the award of that waiver or reduction. 4. DISCLAIMER a. Recipients of access or enhanced access receive all information "AS IS". The County of Oakland, its officers, officials, employees, agents, volunteers, contactors or its public bodies, make no warranties of any kind, including but not limited to warranties of accuracy, fitness for a particular purpose, or of a recipient's right of use. Recipients are solely responsible for investigating, resisting, litigating and settling such complaints, including the payment of any damages or costs, unless the Oakland County Board of Commissioners, by resolution adopted by a majority of those elected and serving, elects to participate in the process of the County's expense. b. Except for the Board of Commissioners, by resolution adopted by a majority of those elected and serving, no officer, official, employee, agent, volunteer, contractor or other person or public body may make any representation or warranty on behalf of the County or one of its public bodies. INVENTORY OF CHANGES TO THE ENHANCED ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY Action Current Proposed 1. Revise 3.f. . Except as otherwise provided by act or statute, all persons shall be charged the reasonable fee approved by the Board of Commissioners for enhanced access to public record or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical .information system. 3.f. Except as otherwise provided by act, statute or Section 3(g) of this policy, all persons shall be charged the reasonable fee approved by the Board of Commissioners for enhanced access to a public record or for access to a geographical information system or the output from a geographical information system. 2. Revise 3g. A public body may furnish access or enhanced access without charge or at a reduced charge if the public body determines that a waiver or reduction of fee is in he public interest because access or enhanced access can be considered as primarily benefiting the general public. Examples may include, but are not limited to, 1 istances when: 3.g. A public body may furnish access or enhanced access without charge or at a reduced charge if the public body determines that a waiver or reduction of fee is in the public interest because access or enhanced access can be considered as primarily benefitting the general public or serving an educational purpose. Examples include, but are not limited to, instances when: 3. Insert 3.g.vii The information is requested by a student for use in an educational or academic project or assignment; . Insert 3.g.viii The information is requested for inclusion in educational or training materials; . Revise 3.h. Waiver or fee reductions shall be decided by the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council, or other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question. The waiver or lee reductions shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners prior to the award of that waiver or reduction. 3.h. Waiver or fee reductions may he granted by the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council, or other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question. Note that minor updates were made to correct grammar and to standardize references to statute but were not included in the Inventory of Changes. Oakland County Dept. of Information Technology 1 May 28, 2013 INVENTORY OF CHANGES TO THE ENHANCED ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS POLICY Action Current Proposed 6. Insert 3.h.i If the enhanced access fee for the requested products is less than $750 and a waiver or reduction of fees is in the public interest, the elected official, department head, agency, board, commission, council, or other county public body legally responsible for the creation, preparation, ownership, custody, control, maintenance, preservation, guardianship, retention, possession or use of the public record(s) in question, in collaboration with the Department of Information Technology may approve a waiver or fee reduction without further action of the Board of Commissioners. 7. Insert 3.h.ii If the enhanced access fee for the requested products is equal to or greater than $750, the waiver or fee reduction shall be approved by the Board of Commissioners prior to the award of that waiver or reduction. Note that minor updates were made to correct grammar and to standardize references to statute but were not included in the Inventory of Changes. Oakland County Dept. of Information Technology 2 May 28, 2013 Resolution #13153 June 13, 2013 Moved by Taub supported by McGillivray the resolutions (with fiscal notes attached) on the amended Consent Agenda be adopted (with accompanying reports being accepted). AYES: Dwyer, Hatchett, Hoffman, Jackson, Long, Matis, McGillivray, Middleton, Quarles, Runestad, Scott, Spisz, Taub, Weipert, Woodward, Zack, Bosnic, Crawford. (18) NAYS: None. (0) A sufficient majority having voted in favor, the resolutions (with fiscal notes attached) on the amended Consent Agenda were adopted (with accompanying reports being accepted). HEREBY APPROVE THIS RESOLUTION CHIEF DEPUTY COUNTY EXECUTIVE ACTING PURSUANT TO Ma. 45.559A (7) STATE OF MICHIGAN) COUNTY OF OAKLAND) I, Lisa Brown, Clerk of the County of Oakland, do hereby certify that the foregoing resolution is a true and accurate copy of a resolution adopted by the Oakland County Board of Commissioners on June 13, 2013, with the original record thereof now remaining in my office. In Testimony Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the County of Oakland at Pontiac, Michigan this 13th day of June, 2013.