Access to certain public records would become more costly and time-consuming for citizens if a proposed resolution under consideration by the City of Boulder is adopted.
The public records access policy is needed to “facilitate public access, protect individual privacy, protect public records from damage or disorganization, prevent excessive interference with other essential functions of the Town and to develop a consistent and fair method of responding to requests for public records,” according to the draft resolution prepared by City Attorney Jana McGill.
The draft policy lays out a process to respond to requests from the public for “non-routine” public records. Under the process, the citizen must submit the request form provided by the city to the city clerk. The clerk then refers the form to the proper department, agency, committee or board, which must then send it to the City Attorney for review. If the attorney determines there are any adjustments required prior to release, the request goes back to the department for adjustment, such as redaction of confidential information. Then it goes once again to the city attorney, who then provides a response to the clerk.
