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CITY OF
NEWPORT BEACH
City Council Staff Report
Agenda Item No. 3
January 24, 2012
HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF THE CITY COUNCIL
FROM: City Clerk's Office
Leilani I. Brown, City Clerk
949 - 644 -3005, Ibrown(a)newportbeachca.gov
PREPARED BY: Leilani I. Brown, City Clerk
APPROVED: is A
TITLE: REVISED CITY COUNCIL POLICY E -1 — PUBLIC RECORDS ACT
POLICY
ABSTRACT:
City Council Policy E -1 (Public Records Act Policy) designates the City Attorney's Office
as the lead department for responding to all requests under the Public Records Act.
City staff proposes to amend City Council Policy E -1 to make the City Clerk's Office the
lead department for coordinating and responding to requests under the Public Records
Act.
RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt Resolution No. 2012 -5 adopting the revised City Council Policy E -1 - Public
Records Act Policy.
FUNDING REQUIREMENTS:
There is no fiscal impact related to this item.
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 2
DISCUSSION:
City Council Policy E -1 applies to all requests for City of Newport Beach ( "City ") rec&ds
made pursuant to the Public Records Act ( "PRA "). The purpose of City Council Policy
E -1 is to ensure a prompt and appropriate response is provided to all "PRA" requests.
The PRA is a State law applicable to cities, including the City of Newport Beach ( "City ")
that allows the public to submit requests to inspect documents prepared, owned, used,
or retained by the City.
Currently, City Council Policy E -1 requires that copies of all PRA requests be delivered
to the City Attorney. To facilitate the quantity of PRA requests being received by the
City and consistent with other cities' practices, the City Clerk's Office and City Attorney's
Office propose amending City Council Policy E -1 to:
➢ Eliminate the need for the City Attorney to be copied on every PRA request.
➢ Require each department to designate PRA representatives ( "PRA Staff').
➢ Designate the City Clerk's Office as the primary office for responding and
coordinating responses with PRA Staff.
➢ Ensure PRA requests are responded to within the time limits established by State
law.
The City Attorney's Office and City Clerk's Office conducted a training session on the
amended City Council Policy E -1 for designated PRA Staff on Tuesday, January 11,
2012. Although the City Attorney's Office will no longer be the lead department on PRA
requests, the City Attorney's Office remains available to assist the City Clerk's Office
and answer any questions that may arise from PRA staff relating to the PRA.
The amended version of Council Policy E -1 is attached as Exhibit 1 to Resolution
No. 2012 -5 (Attachment A). A redline version of City Council Policy E -1 is also attached
as Attachment B. If Resolution No. 2012 -5 is adopted by the City Council, the amended
version of City Council Policy E -1 will take effect immediately.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
Staff recommends the City Council find this action is not subject to the California
Environmental Quality Act ( "CEQA ") pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will
not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the
environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378)
of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Chapter 3, because it
has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or
indirectly.
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 3
NOTICING:
The agenda item has been noticed according to the Brown Act (72 hours in advance of
the meeting at which the City Council considers the item). 3
Submitted by:
L& D.
Leilani I. Brown
City Clerk
Attachments: A. Resolution No. 2012 -5
B. Redline version of Council Policy E -1
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 4
ATTACHMENT A
RESOLUTION NO. 2012 -5 3
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT
BEACH ADOPTING THE REVISED CITY COUNCIL POLICY E -1 —
PUBLIC RECORDS ACT POLICY
WHEREAS, The purpose of City Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
is to ensure prompt and appropriate responses are provided to all Public Records Act
( "PRA ") requests pursuant to California Government Code Sections 6250 et. seq.; and
WHEREAS, in order to facilitate the quantity of PRA requests being received by
the City of Newport Beach and to be consistent with other cities' practices, the City
desires, among other changes, to amend City Council Policy E -1 to designate the City
Clerk's Office as the lead department for responding to and coordinating responses
under the PRA.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of
Newport Beach hereby adopts the revised City Council Policy E -1, as reflected in
Exhibit A of this Resolution, which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference.
ADOPTED this 24`h day of January, 2012.
Nancy Gardner
Mayor
ATTEST:
Leilani I. Brown
City Clerk
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 5
EXHIBIT 1
PUBLIC RECORDS ACT POLICY
3
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to ensure a prompt and appropriate response to all Public
Records Act ( "PRA ") requests.
POLICY
This Policy applies to all requests for City of Newport Beach ( "City') records pursuant to
provisions of the PRA found in Sections 6250 et. seq. of the Government Code of the
State of California. The PRA applies to records that are paper (hard copy) or electronic
(computerized) prepared, owned, used, or retained by the City. Generally, the PRA
requires disclosure of City records within ten (10) calendar days unless there is a
statutory basis for non - disclosure, "unusual circumstances" justify an extension of time,
or the City determines that the public interest in non - disclosure significantly outweighs
the public interest in disclosure.
To facilitate a prompt and appropriate response, all PRA requests shall be processed as
follows:
A. Each Department Director shall designate one (1) staff member, and one (1)
alternate staff member to serve as the PRA representatives for their department ( "PRA
Staff "). The City Clerk shall maintain a list of PRA Staff. Department Directors shall
periodically review the PRA Staff list to ensure it contains the most current information.
B. Any City employee, officer, or Department Director (collectively, "Employee(s) ")
receiving a written PRA request for City records shall, on the day of receipt, deliver a
copy of the request to their respective PRA Staff.
C. Any Employee receiving a verbal PRA request for City records should ask the
requester to confirm the request in writing and, if the requester declines, prepare a
written record of the request. The Employee shall then deliver a copy of the request to
their respective PRA Staff on the day of receipt.
D. Requests for City records must sufficiently describe the records sought so that
identification, location and retrieval can be accomplished. When a request to
inspect /copy a City record is received, and the request does not describe a reasonably
identifiable record, Employees are responsible to assist the requesting party as
reasonably necessary to identify the records they are seeking.
E. City records may be inspected at any time during regular office hours. However,
as a practical matter, the City may need to locate the requested records, gather multiple
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 6
records, or redact exempt information prior to inspection. As soon as possible but not
more than two (2) business days after receiving a request for a City record, PRA Staff
shall review the request and proceed as follows:
3
(1) If the request seeks a City record that is easily identifiable, locatable, and
disclosable (e.g., contracts, staff reports, City Council Policies, etc.), PRA Staff shall
respond directly to the requester with the City record(s) sought; or
(2) If the request seeks a City record that is not easily identifiable, that relates
to pending or anticipated litigation, involves multiple departments, requires more than
two (2) business days to compile responsive documents, is not disclosable (e.g.,
personnel records, legal correspondence, confidential informant information, etc.), or
raises a question as to whether the record is disclosable, the request shall be forwarded
to the City Clerk's PRA Staff, with a "cc" to the City Attorney's PRA Staff.
F. Within two (2) business days of receiving a request from PRA Staff, the City
Clerk or his /her designee shall review the request and proceed as follows:
(1) If the request seeks a City record that is retained by the City Clerk's Office
the City Clerk or his /her designee shall respond directly to the requester with the City
record(s) sought; or
(2) If the request seeks City records retained by a department or multiple
departments the City Clerk or his /her designee shall forward the request to the
responsible PRA Staff within each department with directions on how to proceed. The
City Clerk or his /her designee may designate one (1) department's PRA Staff as the
lead department to respond to the request or may retain lead responsibility for a
response within the City Clerk's Office, in which case the City Clerk's Office will gather
all responsive documents and respond directly to the requester with the City records
sought. If a department's PRA Staff is designated with lead responsibility the
department shall gather all responsive City records from its own department and other
departments, if any, and shall respond directly to the requestor with the City record(s)
sought; or
(3) If the request seeks City records that relate to pending or anticipated
litigation, City records that may not be disclosable, or City records that raise a legal
question, the City Clerk or his /her designee shall contact the City Attorney's Office for
assistance.
G. The City Attorney's Office is available to assist the City Clerk's Office or a
department's PRA Staff with any questions or issues that may arise regarding a PRA
request. The City Attorney's Office shall evaluate all record requests referred by the
City Clerk's Office or a department's PRA Staff and recommend an appropriate
response.
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 7
H. All PRA requests shall be responded to within ten (10) calendar days after the
request is received by the City unless "unusual circumstances ", as defined in California
Government Code Section 6253(c) or any successor statute, require additional time dot
exceeding fourteen (14) calendar days. The City Attorney's Office shall be copied on all
written requests for additional time.
I. Once a request is made to inspect a City record and the records identified are
located in the electronic communication system, the Employee having control of the
electronic communication shall use his /her best efforts, to temporarily preserve the
record until it is determined if the record is subject to preservation, public inspection, or
production.
J. All PRA requests for electronic communications should be handled in
accordance with this Policy, Policy D -7 (Electronic Communications), and departmental
policy and direction. All electronic communications that constitute an identifiable City
record and that are not privileged or exempt from disclosure shall be disclosed in
compliance with the applicable provisions of the PRA.
K. The City is obligated to produce disclosable City records upon payment of fees
covering direct costs of duplication or a statutory fee, if applicable (a fee is not
applicable to a request to inspect documents). The City is not entitled to recover costs
associated with searching for or retrieving the record unless specifically authorized by
State law. The requestor should be referred to the Finance Department for payment of
the costs of duplication prior to release of the records.
L. An Employee is authorized not to disclose City records pursuant to a PRA
request when:
1. The request does not reasonably describe an identifiable record after the
City makes a reasonable effort to elicit additional clarifying information to help identify
the record(s);
2. The request requires the City to compile data, perform research or create
new records not currently in existence;
3. The request seeks records which are privileged or exempt from
disclosure; or
4. The request seeks records that cannot be reasonably separated from
records which are exempt from disclosure.
Any questions related to the applicability of a particular exemption shall be
referred to the City Attorney's Office.
Amendment to Council Policy E -1 — Public Records Act Policy
January 24, 2012
Page 8
M. The City Clerk, with assistance from the City Attorney, will monitor compliance
with this Policy and State law regulating the PRA.
3
N. The City Clerk with the concurrence of the City Attorney may amend this Policy
to allow for improved efficiencies and changes in State law relating to the PRA.
Adopted - January 24, 1994
Amended - April 23, 2002
Amended - January 24, 2012
ATTACHMENT B E -1
PUBLIC RECORDS ACT POLICY
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to ensure a prompt and appropriate response to all Public
Records Act ( "PRA ") requests. 3
POLICY
This Ppolicy applies to all requests for City of Newport Beach ( "City ") records pursuant
to provisions of the P blie Reeerdcs ^Gt (PRA4 found in Sections 6250 et. seq. of the
Government Code of the State of California. The PRA applies to records that are paper
(hard copy) or electronic (computerized) prepared, owned, used, or retained by the City.
Generally, Tthe PRA requires disclosure of City records within ten (10) calendar days
unless there is a statutory basis for non - disclosure, "unusual circumstances" iustifv an
extension of time, or the City determines that the public interest in non - disclosure
significantly outweighs the public interest in disclosure. The City is liable fer Atteme.;s
fees and osts an the event n „rt Ar.ders elease of F ends that the Cit,, has not
.disrlpse.d After re iet of A . eot
To facilitate a prompt and appropriate response, all PRA requests shall be processed as
follows:
A. Each Department Director shall designate one (1) staff member, and one (1)
alternate staff member to serve as the PRA representatives for their department ( "PRA
Staff'). The City Clerk shall maintain a list of PRA Staff. Department Directors shall
Periodically review the PRA Staff list to ensure it contains the most current information.
B.X Any City employee, er officer, or Department Director (collectively,
"Employee(s) ") receiving a written PRA request for City records shall, on the day of
receipt, deliver a copy of the request to their respective PRA Staff. rit„ ^T
C.9- Any Employee receiving a verbal PRA r Aod dhAt r h far r ^r d°
„r that sho,,l,d he reviewed h„ the Git„ ^tteMey s nffiGe request for City records should
ask the requester to confirm the request in writing and, if the requester declines,
prepare a written record of the request. The Employee shall then deliver a copy of the
request to their respective PRA Staff on the day of receipt.
D.G Requests for City p4b4r cords must sufficiently describe the records sought so
that identification, location and retrieval can be accomplished. When a request to
inspect/copy a Cityptblie record is received, and the request does not describe a
reasonably identifiable record, &Employees are responsible to assist the requesting
party as reasonably necessary to identify the records they are seeking.
E. City records may be inspected at any time during regular office hours. However,
as a practical matter, the City may need to locate the requested records, gather multiple
E -1
records, or redact exempt information prior to inspection. As soon as possible but not
more than two (2) calendar days after receiving a request for a City record, PRA Staff
shall review the request and proceed as follows:
(1) If the request seeks a City record that is easily identifiable, locatable, and
disclosable (e.g., contracts, staff reports, City Council Policies, etc.), PRA Staff *all
respond directly to the requester with the City record(s) sought; or
(2) If the request seeks a City record that is not easily identifiable, that relates
to pending or anticipated litigation, involves multiple departments, requires more than
two (2) calendar days to compile responsive documents, is not disclosable (e.g.,
personnel records, legal correspondence, confidential informant information, etc.), or
raises a question as to whether the record is disclosable, the request shall be forwarded
to the City Clerk's PRA Staff, with a "cc" to the City Attorney's PRA Staff.
F. Within two (2) calendar days of receiving a request from PRA Staff, the City Clerk
or his /her designee shall review the request and proceed as follows:
(1) If the request seeks a City record that is retained by the City Clerk's Office
the City Clerk or his /her designee shall respond directly to the requester with the City
record(s) sought: or
(2) If the request seeks City records retained by a department or multiple
departments the City Clerk or his /her designee shall forward the request to the
responsible PRA Staff within each department with directions on how to proceed. The
City Clerk or his /her designee may designate one (1) department's PRA Staff as the
lead department to respond to the request or may retain lead responsibility for a
response within the City Clerk's Office, in which case the City Clerk's Office will gather
all responsive documents and respond directly to the requester with the City records
sought. If a department's PRA Staff is designated with lead responsibility the
department shall gather all responsive City records from its own department and other
departments, if any, and shall respond directly to the requestor with the City record(s)
sought; or
(3) If the request seeks City records that relate to pending or anticipated
litigation, City records that may not be disclosable, or City records that raise a legal
question, the City Clerk or his /her designee shall contact the City Attorney's Office for
assistance.
G. The City Attorney's Office is available to assist the City Clerk's Office or a
department's PRA Staff with any questions or issues that may arise regarding a PRA
2
E -1
request. The City Attorney's Office shall evaluate all record requests referred by the
City Clerk's Office or a department's PRA Staff and recommend an appropriate
response.
H.G All PRA requests shall be responded to The City ^tt„rRe y shall respond t„ the
PRA ,=ecluest—within ten (10) calendar days after the request is received by the ffity
unless ""unusual circumstances " ", as defined in California Government Code Section
6253(c) or any successor statutet a DR , require additional time not exceeding
fourteen (14) calendar days._ The City Attorney's Office shall be copied on all written
requests for additional time.
rdirr.ntir.n to the DepartrneRt DireGtGF(S) c nifyiRg thre r ords to be rdupliGate d nnr! i
the ease of e!eE.tFE)n'.. r ar.d.. the fOFFnat of the r ..r.ds to be .dise'a,....,1
I.M-. Once a request is made to inspect a Citypf record and the records identified
are located in the electronic communication system, the Employee' Its #.r
empleyee _having control of the electronic communication shall use his /her best efforts,
to temporarily preserve the record until it is determined if the record is subject to
preservation, public inspection, or production.
J.�. All PRA requests for electronic communications should be handled in
accordance with this Policy, Policy D =7€- Electronic Communications), and
9departmental policy and direction._ All electronic communications that constitute an
identifiable City publiErecord and that are not privileged or exempt from disclosure shall
be disclosed in compliance with the applicable provisions of the PRA.
K.L The City is obligated to produce disclosable City" records upon payment of
fees covering direct costs of duplication or a statutory fee, if applicable (a fee is not
applicable to a request to inspect documents). The City is not entitled to recover costs
associated with searching for or retrieving the record unless specifically authorized by
State law. The requestor should be referred to the Finance ^,drn'nWrAt*vP. sppod,.o';
Department for payment of the costs of duplication prior to release of the records.
L.K- An Employee ° after review by the C t„ Attorney, is authorized not to disclose
City records pursuant to a PRA request when:
1. The request does not reasonably describe an identifiable record after the
City a reasonable effort to elicit additional clarifying information to help
identify the record(s);
2. The request weuKd requires that -the City to compile data, perform research
or create new records not currently in existence;
3. The request seeks records which are privileged or exempt from
disclosure: or
3
E -1
4. The request seeks records that cannot be whiGh Are net reasonably
separated segfegab'e —from records which are exempt from disclosure.?
Anv auestions related to the applicability of a particular exemption shall be
referred to the City Attorney's Office.
3
M. The City Clerk, with assistance from the City Attorney, will monitor compliance
with this Policy and State law regulating the PRA.
N. The City Clerk with the concurrence of the City Attorney may amend this Policy
to allow for improved efficiencies and changes in State law relating to the PRA.
Adopted -January 24, 1994
Amended - April 23, 2002
Amended – January 2012
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