FAQ for Public Records Requests

Answer:

Section 119.07(4)(a)1, FS, states if the law does not prescribe a fee, the agency is allowed to charge up to 15 cents per one-sided copy for copies that are 14" x 8 1/2" or less. A charge of up to $1 per copy may be assessed for a certified copy of a public record. If the nature and volume of the records to be copied requires extensive use of information technology resources or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance, or both, the agency may charge a reasonable service charge based on the actual cost incurred.  The agency may require a reasonable deposit or advance payment.

Answer: 

There are various records that are considered exempt and/or confidential and, therefore, not available through a public records request. Specific statutory exemptions are contained throughout Florida Statutes. Specifically, Florida Statute Section 119.071, defines which records or information within the records are exempt from inspection or copying and contains some commonly cited exemptions which include active criminal intelligence information, active criminal investigative information, and security system plans. To view these exemptions, please visit: Statutes & Constitution: View Statutes: Online Sunshine (state.fl.us).

Answer:

• Sealed bids, proposals, or replies, until notice of an intended decision or 30 days after opening.
• A public record that was prepared by an agency attorney (including an attorney employed or retained by the agency or employed or retained by another public officer or agency to protect or represent the interests of the agency having custody of the record) or prepared at the attorney's express direction, that reflects a mental impression, conclusion, litigation strategy, or legal theory of the attorney or the agency, and that was prepared exclusively for civil or criminal litigation or for adversarial administrative proceedings, or that was prepared in anticipation of imminent civil or criminal litigation or imminent adversarial administrative proceedings, until conclusion of the litigation or administrative proceedings.
• Records, information, photographs, audio and visual presentations, schematic diagrams, surveys, recommendations, or consultations or portions thereof relating directly to the physical security of a facility or revealing security systems
• The social security numbers of all current and former employees which numbers are held by the employer are confidential
• Medical information pertaining to a prospective, current, or former officer or employee, which, if disclosed, would identify that officer or employee is exempt
• Personal identifying information of a dependent child of a current or former officer or employee, which dependent child is insured by a group insurance plan
• Any information revealing undercover personnel of criminal justice
• The home addresses, telephone numbers, social security numbers, and photographs of active or former law enforcement personnel; the home addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, and places of employment of the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel.
• The home addresses, telephone numbers, and photographs of firefighters certified in compliance with s. 633.35; the home addresses, telephone numbers, photographs, and places of employment of the spouses and children of such firefighters; and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such firefighters
• The home addresses, telephone numbers, and photographs of current or former human resource, labor relations, or employee relations directors, assistant directors, managers, or assistant managers of any local government agency or water management district whose duties include hiring and firing employees, labor contract negotiation, administration, or other personnel-related duties; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, and places of employment of the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel
• The home addresses, telephone numbers, and photographs of current or former code enforcement officers; the names, home addresses, telephone numbers, and places of employment of the spouses and children of such personnel; and the names and locations of schools and day care facilities attended by the children of such personnel
• The audit report of an internal auditor prepared for or on behalf of a unit of local government becomes public record when the audit becomes final
• Any data, record, or document used directly or solely by a municipally owned utility to prepare and submit a bid relative to the sale, distribution, or use of any service, commodity, or tangible personal property to any customer or prospective customer
• Active criminal investigative information and intelligence
• Other exemptions may apply in specific circumstances

Section 119.07(1), FS, states a custodian of a public record who contends that the record or part of a record is exempt from inspection must state the basis for that exemption, including the statutory citation. Additionally, when asked, the custodian must state in writing the reasons for concluding the record is exempt.

Answer:

Requests will be closed if a requesting party fails to pay the final invoice, deposit invoice, or fails to respond to inquiries for clarification pertaining to a public records request for fourteen (14) days following the invoice or clarification inquiry. If you have previously received a final invoice or a good-faith deposit invoice for labor and/or duplication costs incurred for your request, and you have not paid the costs associated with that request, Clearwater will not provide records for subsequent requests until such time as the past due amounts have been paid. Once payment is received, the request will be resubmitted as a new request. If a response to an inquiry for clarification is made after 14 days from the inquiry, the request will be resubmitted as a new request.

Requests may be made by contacting the Clearwater City Clerk or Clearwater Police Department through their website, phone, fax, in-person or in writing:

Answer:

The City Clerk's office promptly acknowledges each received public record request. If you make a request and do not receive confirmation within a reasonable time, please contact us directly.

City Clerk
Phone: (727) 562-4093

Clearwater Police Department
Phone: (727) 562-4441
Email: PoliceSSD-Records@myclearwater.com

Answer:

No. Public records requests do not have to be made in writing unless specifically required by statute. However, it is good practice to be as specific and precise as you can when making a public records request. A written request provides us with specific details of what you seek, helps us provide you with pertinent and an accurate response.

Answer:

Clearwater will make our best effort to provide a good-faith invoice prior to labor costs being assessed for requests. However, we cannot guarantee that a good-faith deposit invoice can be provided for every request prior to costs being incurred. Public records requests, and the amount of resources the agency puts forth to respond, vary greatly. Good-faith deposit invoices for estimated costs to fulfill public records requests are provided as soon as possible once the research for the request is conducted. Research and/or retrieval of records may exceed thirty (30) minutes before a good-faith deposit invoice amount can be projected. Costs for the agency resources expended to fulfill the request will be charged whether or not a good-faith deposit invoice is provided prior to costs being incurred.

 The results for some requests requiring extensive clerical or supervisory labor may be negative, and Clearwater may not have records responsive to the public records request. Good-faith deposits will not be returned for labor-expended researching requests even if the results are negative.

 Because Clearwater is a state agency, credit cannot be extended. If you have  a previously received public records, or an invoice for labor time already expended on your request, and you have not paid the costs associated with that response, Clearwater will not provide records for subsequent requests until such time as the past due amounts have been paid.

Answer:

In general, the more specifics provided for your public records request, the less likely that ‘extensive use’ costs will become a factor. Labor costs can be reduced significantly if requests include keywords instead of open-ended terms such as ‘any and all records’. Similarly, narrowing a request to certain individuals, a specific event, or a particular date range can greatly reduce the use of extensive labor.