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2009-05 Fees for Public Records SearchRESOLUTION NO. 09-05 • A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF OKEECHOBEE, FLORIDA, TO REVISE AND ESTABLISH CITY FEES FOR PUBLIC RECORDS REQUESTS IN CONFORMANCE WITH FLORIDA STATUTES CHAPTER 119; SUPERSEDING ALL. PRIOR RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION OF NEW FEES; PROVIDING FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES CONCERNING FEES AND INCLUDING AN INTERPRETATION OF THE TERM "EXTENSIVE" FOR RESEARCH PURPOSES; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES AND FEE SCHEDULE TO THE CODE OF ORDINANCES AS APPENDIX G; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City of Okeechobee, Florida, received requests for various types of public records; and WHEREAS, the City of Okeechobee, Florida, incurs administrative expenses to record and organize activities, programs, plans and events of interest to the public; and WHEREAS, additional costs are occasionally incurred in providing open access to a wide array of public records and in producing public records; and WHEREAS, the City Council desires to have such costs borne by person requesting records to the extent allowed by law; and WHEREAS, Florida Statutes Chapter 119.071(b) authorized the City Council to establish reasonable charges and fees for public records. WHEREAS, in the interest of expediency and ease of amendment as necessary, it is in the best interests of the City to adopt a schedule of fees and administrative procedures by resolution, and to include such fee schedule and procedures in Appendix G to the City Code of Ordinances. NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved before the City Council of the City of Okeechobee, Florida; presented at a duly advertised public meeting; and passed by a majority vote of the City Council; and properly executed by the Mayor or designee, as Chief Presiding Officer for the City: SECTION 1. The City Council hereby revises and establishes the fees for public records request as set out in "Exhibit A," attached hereto and made part hereof. SECTION 2. The Council hereby revises and establishes procedures for assessing, processing, handling and collecting fees set out in "Exhibit B," attached hereto and made a part hereof. • SECTION 3. This Resolution shall supersede all prior rate resolutions. SECTION 4. If any section subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this Resolution, or application hereof, is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such portion or provision and such holding Resolution No. 09-05 Page 1 of 4 shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions or applications here. SECTION 5. Effective Date. This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption. INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED in regular session this 1r day of Februarv. 2009. Dowling R. 41<1ar Pi`o-Tempore c ATTFEST: + r aAL Lane Gamiotea, CMC, City Clerk REVIEWED FOR LEGAL S FICIENCY: John R. Cook, City Attorney Resolution No. 09-05 Page 2 of 4 RESOLUTION NO. 09-05 - EXHIBIT A • • City of Okeechobee, Florida FEES FOR PUBLIC RECORDS AND REPORTS $0.15 Per 1-sided black and white copy excludes Crash and Homicide Reports $0.20 Per 2-sided black and white copy excludes Crash and Homicide Reports $0.50 Per 1-sided color copy $0.75 Per 2-sided color copy $1.00 Per certified copy $2.00** Per copy for Crash Report $25.00** Per copy for Homicide Report $20.00 Per copy of any Colored Coded City Map $1.00 Per floppy disk $1.00 Per GIS color map page $5.00 Per audio cassette tape $20.00 Per VHS tape $10.00 Per CD $10.00 Per DVD $5.00 Fingerprints, residents $7.00 Fingerprints, non-residents $6.00 4"W' photographs $23.00* Solicitors' background check $5.00 Per other police department background checks $20.00 Per Parcel for Lien Search Request Actual Cost Documents larger than 11 x17, actual cost of duplication Procedures are set forth in Exhibit B for assessing fees for public records or reports requests (1) which require extensive use of information technology reserves, (2) which require extensive clerical and/or supervisory assistance by personnel of the City, (3) in a medium requested which the City does not ordinarily use, but which the City can provide as requested, or (4) which the City can satisfy a request for records not routinely developed or maintain by the City that requires a substantial amount of research, examination or programming. *Actual costs as amended by FDLE **Per F.S. 321.23(2)(a) Resolution No. 09-05 Page 3 of 4 RESOLUTION NO. 09-05 - EXHIBIT B City of Okeechobee, Florida ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES CONCERNING FEES FOR PUBLIC RECORDS AND REPORTS The charges set forth in Exhibit A are for copies duplicated copies and not more than 14x8'/2 inches in size. Charges for copies of other sized will require payment of actual costs of duplication for the sizes requested. The phrase "actual cost of duplication" means the cost of the material and supplies used to duplicate the record, but it does not include the labor cost or overhead cost associated with such duplication. The charges for copies of City maps or aerial photographs supplied by the City may also include a reasonable charge for the labor and overhead associated with their duplication. The charges set forth in Exhibit A are to be assessed for all copies made in any medium or technology (e.g. audio tapes, VHS tapes, etc.), described therein, unless the copies are for another governmental entity, a member of a City Advisory Board in connection with the Boards duties, a City Council Candidate who has qualified for election. Sales tax does not apply to the cost of copies of public records. Each Department that maintains documents determined to be public records in an electronic record keeping system shall work through the City Clerk as the official custodian of all City records, to provide to any person a copy of any requested document(s) in that system which is not exempted by law from public disclosure. The City will provide a copy of the record in the medium requested if the City maintains the record in that medium, and the City will charge a fee in accordance with this policy as listed in Exhibit A. The City shall make every effort to respond to public records requests as quickly as possible, depending upon the nature, volume and scope of the request. Every effort will be made to give the requestor an expected date of delivery as soon as it can be determined. For the purpose of satisfying a public records request, the fee is to be charged by the City, to provide a copy of a public record in a medium not routinely used by the City, or to compile records not routinely developed or maintained by the City or that requires a substantial amount of research, examination or programming, must be in accordance with the paragraph below. If the nature or volume of public records requested to be inspected, examined or copied is such as to require extensive use of information technology resources, or extensive clerical or supervisory assistance by personnel of the City, or both, the City may charge in addition to the actual cost of duplication, a special service charge, which shall be reasonable and shall be based on the cost incurred for such extensive use of information technology resources or the labor cost of the personnel providing the service that is actually incurred by the City for the clerical and supervisory assistance required, or both. "Extensive" shall be interpreted to mean anything in excess of fifteen (15) minutes including time to retrieve, monitor, inspect, copy and re-file the City records to storage. The fees to be charged for duplication of public records, or reports the City provides, shall be collected, deposited and accounted for in the manner prescribed for other operating funds of the City. In the event the estimated cost of the record to be produced is more than $50.00, the City shall require a deposit in amount of the estimated cost and the deposit shall be applied against the total cost of the records. The City Clerk's Office shall issue a receipt for funds collected and the City shall periodically deposit those funds into a miscellaneous revenue account. The Public Records Act does not require that the City create documents that do not already exist, such as lists or summaries of information. It only requires inspection and copying upon request of public records that are already in existence and where no exemption applies. Resolution No. 09-05 Page 4 of 4